About 200 New Hampshire pharmacists have taken the first step toward making emergency contraception more widely available in the state.

A law allowing specially trained pharmacists to dispense the "morning-after pill" was passed six months ago, but the pill hasn't yet been available to women without a prescription. Two training sessions held this past weekend started that process. Once pharmacists are trained, they must partner with a physician or nurse practitioner to be able to prescribe the pill on the spot.

Women's health groups hope emergency contraception will be more readily available as early as next month.

"There's a real need in the community," said Maureen Adams, a pharmacist who works at Concord Hospital and attended the training. "The earlier they receive it (the morning-after pill), the more effective it is. The pharmacy is the first link."

The morning-after pill is a high dose of regular birth control that works in one of three ways: blocking the release of an egg, preventing fertilization or stopping a fertilized egg from implanting in the uterine wall. It can reduce the chance of pregnancy by 89 percent if taken within 72 hours of unprotected sex.

After a months-long debate, New Hampshire was the seventh state to allow women to obtain the pill without a doctor's prescription. Two months after the law was passed, the federal Food and Drug Administration put off its long-awaited decision on whether to sell emergency contraception over the counter.

Proponents of the state's law say letting pharmacists play that role will make it easier for women to get emergency contraception -especially on weekends, holidays and after-hours - and reduce the number of unintended pregnancies and abortions.

But not all pharmacists have signed up. There are more than 1,200 pharmacists in the state, about 800 of whom work in "retail,"said Dawn Touzin, the public affairs director of Planned Parenthood of Northern New England. She figures that 15 percent are on board so far.

"These pharmacists are almost like the guinea pigs," said Liza Dube, the political director of NARAL Pro-Choice New Hampshire. "Others may hold off until they see the advantages, and then maybe they'll participate."

Some pharmacists have said they're against the idea of emergency contraception and others have said they worry about the medical side effects or the liability that comes with dispensing the drugs. The training sessions addressed those issues.

Don Downing, a pharmacist and associate professor at the University of Washington School of Pharmacy, offered his experiences from the field. In 1998, Washington became the first state to allow pharmacists to write their own prescriptions for emergency contraception. Since then, he estimated that 200,000 women have obtained the drug that way and no one has been sued.

"You're following a protocol," he explained.

Part of that protocol is to prescribe the pill first and ask questions afterward. Any female, regardless of her age, can have the pill if she's had unprotected sex in the past five days and has had her period in the past four weeks, which means she's not pregnant. She must also sign a consent form.

Then, if a pharmacist suspects that a woman has been raped, he or she can refer the woman to the hospital or to one of the state's 14 crisis centers, said Jennifer Pierce-Weeks, director of the NH SANE Program. It is not mandatory that the pharmacist report the assault unless the female is under 18. In that case, Downing suggested the pharmacist dispense the drug and then tell the girl about his or her intention to call the authorities.

"You never hold them hostage,"he said. "They've just been held hostage."

Some pharmacists said yesterday that they will welcome the opportunity to counsel women who come in for the morning-after pill. Adams said she suspects she'll be able to connect them to needed services, such as primary care physicians, domestic violence shelters or places like Planned Parenthood, where women can get less-expensive care. (next page »)