Lawmaker calls for over-the-counter access to pill

U.S. Rep. Cory Gardner is proposing that women be allowed to buy birth control pills without a prescription.

Gardner made the suggestion Thursday after being criticized by Democrats on women's rights.

Gardner, a Republican, is challenging Democratic Sen. Mark Udall in the November election.

Udall aired an ad this week accusing Gardner of wanting to ban birth control because he backed a measure to give legal rights to fertilized eggs. Planned Parenthood also hit Gardner on the issue in an ad Thursday.

Gardner has since disavowed the so-called personhood proposal. In a piece for the Denver Post, he said it would be safer and cheaper if the pill was available over the counter.

Gardner and Udall are competing for the votes of a small number of suburban women who often decide statewide Colorado elections.

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