The sponge bounces back. (FYI).

The Today contraceptive sponge is once again available to American women. (1) As thousands of women, family planning professionals and viewers of Seinfeld are aware, the over-the-counter method, introduced to the U.S. market in 1983, was discontinued in 1995 because the factory that produced it failed to meet Food and Drug Administration (FDA) manufacturing standards. While a new manufacturer awaits FDA approval to sell the device in the United States, it is already shipping the sponge to stores across Canada. In the meantime, two Canadian Internet sites are selling the sponge on-line, so for U.S. women, it is only a mouse click away. The polyurethane device prevents pregnancy by covering the cervix and releasing the spermicide nonoxynol-9; its protection begins immediately after it is inserted and lasts for 24 hours. Hundreds of women have already ordered the sponge, which is easier to use and less expensive than similar devices that have been available on-line since Today was withdrawn from the market.

(1.) Associated Press, Contraceptive sponge back on the market, Washington Post, Mar. 5, 2003, p. A7.

FYI is compiled and written by Dore Hollander, executive editor of Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health.