New ‘Morning After’ Pill May Dodge RU-486 Pitfalls

A small New Jersey firm may become the first drug manufacturer in the United States to market a “morning after” birth control pill similar to those sold in Europe, it was reported Sunday.

Roderick Mackenzie, chief executive of Gynetics Inc. of Belle Mead, told the Newark Star-Ledger that he is optimistic about federal approval for the pill, which would prevent pregnancy up to 72 hours after intercourse.

Conservative groups, believing the pill would be an abortion mechanism like the French pill RU-486, already are rallying to oppose it, the newspaper said.

But it contains different ingredients than RU-486 and would work by inhibiting or disrupting ovulation, interfering with fertilization or preventing the embryo from getting to or taking hold in the uterus.

The House last month passed legislation that would ban the FDA from using federal funds to approve or regulate a drug that chemically induces abortion, a bill that, if it became law, would effectively ban RU-486 in the United States. Officials from the Food and Drug Administration, which must approve the Gynetics pill, had no comment.

Mackenzie said that he set up Gynetics solely to produce the pill, which is still unnamed, and that the pill should generate annual sales of about $300 million.