Don’t Worry | Be Happy

Package Design & Unintended Pregnancy

In the second major recall of contraception in less than six months, Pfizer has recalled about 1 million packets of birth control pills because confusion in packaging has caused a misalignment of the pill order, increasing the likelihood of pregnancy. TIMELAND writes:

The affected pills include 14 lots of Lo/Ovral-28 tablets and 14 lots of generic Norgestrel and Ethinyl Estradiol tablets. All the pills were marketed by Akrimax Rx Products and have expiration dates ranging from July 31, 2013, to March 31, 2014. They were distributed to warehouses, clinics and pharmacies throughout the U.S.

Pfizer notified pharmacies and distributors on Dec. 28 that it was recalling the pills, writes the Wall Street Journal. The company believed, based on the “low defect rate and our health-hazard assessment,” that providing public notice wasn’t necessary. Late Tues. Pfizer changed its mind, deciding that perhaps women who were taking the pills and might become pregnant deserved to be notified.

Typically missing one pill or taking the wrong pill doesn’t result in an unintended pregnancy. The reality is that on their own, women are known to miss taking their contraceptive pill, thus increasing the possibility of pregnancy.

Is Bible Against Higher Pay for Teachers?

He said what??? Alabama state Sen. Shadrack McGill said that increasing pay for teachers is against ‘a biblical principle’ because it might attract people who otherwise wouldn’t do the job.

“Teachers need to make the money that they need to make,” McGill said, according to the Times-Journal. “If you double a teacher’s pay scale, you’ll attract people who aren’t called to teach … and these teachers that are called to teach, regardless of the pay scale, they would teach. It’s just in them to do. It’s the ability that God give ‘em.”

Alabama is leading the nation in beginning pay for teachers but lags significantly behind in average pay, writes Huff Po. In real terms, teacher pay has declined for 30 years, with an average starting salary of $39,000. The average ending salary is $67,000 says the New York Times.