Wal-Mart will now be required to carry emergency contraception pills at its Massachusetts pharmacies, following a unanimous vote by the state's Board of Pharmacy.

The decision comes two weeks after three women sued Wal-Mart over its failure to carry the pill, reports The Associated Press

The White House drug czar says there's a new trend in teen drug use. John Walters says for the first time, teenage girls are trying marijuana, alcohol and cigarettes at higher rates than boys. But overall, teen drug use is declining.

The trend reversal noted in a new government analysis comes even as teen drug use is declining overall. The National Survey on Drug Use and Health, released by John Walters, the national drug policy director, indicates 1.5 million girls ages 12 to 17 started drinking alcohol in 2004. That compares with nearly 1.3 million boys

ediatricians should speak out in support of needle exchange programs to reduce the spread of HIV among injection drug users, the American Academy of Pediatrics says in a toughened policy statement.

Doctors should also discuss HIV risk with their teenage patients "with a nonjudgmental approach" and offer confidential help if local laws allow, the group says in the statement that appears Monday in the journal Pediatrics

A gathering of women's groups called on retail giant Wal-Mart to begin stocking morning-after birth control pills in its pharmacies Friday.

Their claim came during the same week three women filed a lawsuit against Wal-Mart, saying the company has violated Massachusetts state law by failing to stock supplies of the pill in its stores

Wal-Mart is being sued by three women who claim the retailer violated a Massachusetts regulation by failing to make emergency contraception pills available in its pharmacies.

The lawsuit, backed by three abortion rights groups, seeks to force the retail giant to stock the morning-after-pill in 44 Wal-Marts and four Sam Club stores in the state