WASHINGTON, Feb. 15 (UPI) -- Wal-Mart pharmacies are required to stock emergency contraception in Massachusetts, a state regulatory body ruled Tuesday.
The retail giant has until Thursday to comply with the Massachusetts Pharmacy Board ruling, and a company spokesman earlier said that the company would comply with any state decision on the matter.
The board's unanimous decision makes Massachusetts the second state in the country, after Illinois, requiring pharmacies to carry the controversial medication.
Two weeks ago three women filed a lawsuit in state court alleging that by not stocking emergency contraception, Wal-Mart was in violation of a state law requiring pharmacies to carry all "commonly prescribed medications in accordance with the usual needs of the community."
At the same time, they filed a complaint with the Pharmacy Board, resulting in Tuesday's ruling. The lawsuit is still pending in Suffolk Superior Court.
In response to the lawsuit, Wal-Mart said it does not stock emergency contraception for business reasons, including low demand.
"The Pharmacy Board has done the right thing," said Melissa Kogut, executive director of NARAL Pro-Choice Massachusetts, an abortion-rights group that filed the lawsuit with Planned Parenthood of Massachusetts and Jane Doe Inc.
"Now, we call on Wal-Mart to do the right thing -- not only in Massachusetts but across the country: Wal-Mart should stock Plan B in all of its pharmacies and replace its current policy of discrimination with one that puts women's health first."
Emergency contraception, also known as Plan B or the morning-after pill, is an oral medication taken in several doses that can prevent a fertilized egg from implanting in the uterus when taken as much as 120 hours after intercourse -- but with each passing hour its effectiveness in preventing pregnancy decreases.
Opponents of the medication say it is tantamount to an abortion and that its availability will encourage promiscuity.
Advocates of its availability point to studies indicating it could prevent 1.5 million unintended pregnancies and 800,000 abortions each year.
