The company hopes that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) would grant approval for the marketing of the pill in the U.S.

Ella prevents pregnancy from occurring when taken within 120 hours (5 days) after unprotected intercourse or contraceptive failure.

This is the first ever drug to have been specifically designed and developed for use as an emergency contraceptive.

Currently, the drug available in the U.S. is the Plan B pill, which is only effective in the first 72 hours.

Ella is already marketed in 22 countries as an emergency contraceptive and is better adapted to women’s lifestyle and reproductive health.

"There is a great unmet need out there for emergency contraception that is effective as this for so long," said Erin Gainer, chief executive of HRA Pharma of Paris.

Ella prevents pregnancy from occurring when taken within 120 hours (5 days) after unprotected intercourse or contraceptive failure. This is the first ever drug to have been specifically designed and developed for use as an emergency contraceptive.

Arguments by critics
Because of similarities in its chemical makeup to the so-called abortion pill RU-486, which can terminate a pregnancy for up to nine weeks, pro-Life groups are opposing this new pill not as a contraceptive but a form of abortion.

Critics argue that there is a strong possibility that ella could induce an already fertilized embryo to detach or fail to implant.

According to them, it was not fair to market the drug as a contraceptive as it would mislead women.

Jeanne Monahan, director of the Family Research Council's Center for Human Dignity, says, "The difference between preventing life and destroying life is hugely significant to many women. Women deserve to know that difference."

Wendy Wright of the Concerned Women for America, an organization that opposed the “morning after pill” states that ella is a poorly tested abortion pill that carries potential health risks for women.

There are also concerns that women who are unaware that they have already conceived may unknowingly induce an abortion by taking a pill believed to prevent a pregnancy from happening.

"With (ella) women will be enticed to buy a poorly tested abortion drug, unaware of its medical risks, under the guise that it's a morning-after pill," said Wendy Wright.

Ella welcomed by proponents
On the other hand, ella is being hailed by proponents of family planning and reproductive rights as a necessary additional form of emergency contraception.

According to them, ella has been tested only within five days of unprotected sex and there is no indication that the drug works as anything other than a contraceptive.

Preliminary trials involving more than 4,500 women in the United States and Europe have established the safety and efficacy of ella. The only adverse effects noted were headaches, nausea, and fatigue.

"The people who are opposing this are not just opposed to abortion," said Amy Allina, program director at the National Women's Health Network. "They also opposed contraception and they are trying to confuse the issue."

A little about emergency contraception
Emergency contraception can prevent pregnancy in a number of ways: by stopping ovulation , blocking fertilization of an egg, or preventing a fertilized egg from implanting in the womb.

According to the Family Planning Association, emergency contraception can prevent nearly 95 percent of pregnancies when taken within 24 hours of unprotected sex, and up to 58 percent when taken between 49 and 72 hours after intercourse.