Poll finds very mixed views on morning-after pill; black/white breast cancer disparities widen

Dec 23 2013

Several stories this morning examine tricky problems in women's health care.

NPR: Poll: Americans Favor Age Restrictions On Morning-After Pill
First, we found out [in the NPR-Truven Health Analytics Health Poll] that most people are familiar that there is a morning-after pill. ... Eighteen percent said there should be no age minimum. Around the same proportion -; 17 percent -; said a prescription should always be required, regardless of the buyer's age. ... About two-thirds of respondents believe that parents should have to give their permission before anyone under 18 buys the morning-after pill without a prescription. That's not a requirement now. ... Finally, most Americans believe insurers should pay for the morning-after pill(Hensley, 12/19).

The New York Times: Tackling A Racial Gap In Breast Cancer Survival
Despite 20 years of pink ribbon awareness campaigns and numerous advances in medical treatment that have sharply improved survival rates for women with breast cancer in the United States, the vast majority of those gains have largely bypassed black women. ... In the 1980s, breast cancer survival rates for the two were nearly identical. But since 1991, as improvements in screening and treatment came into use, the gap has widened, with no signs of abating. Although breast cancer is diagnosed in far more white women, black women are far more likely to die of the disease  (Parker-Pope, 12/20).