_WORLD WATCH______________________________
____________________ Chile ________________

Free distribution of “morning-after” pill
Court rulings in conflict
Chilean Health Minister Michelle Bachelet has announced that health care officials will distribute the abortifacient “morning-after” pill, Postinor-2, free of charge. The decision came as a surprise, since Chile’s Supreme Court banned a similar morning-after pill on August 30. However, the ruling reflects the results of an appeals court ruling which permitted the new pill.

On the very day in August that the Supreme Court banned Postinal, one form of morning-after pill, the Ministry of Health had announced its official approval for the distribution of Postinor-2. The government ministry explained that decision by saying that the Supreme Court’s ruling applied only to a particular brand-name drug. When pro-life groups asked the Santiago Appeals Court to overrule the ministry, the court declined. Pro-life groups now plan to appeal the Postinor-2 decision to the Supreme Court.

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