A new contraceptive pill is one step closer to being approved for the U.S. market.

On Thursday, a Food and Drug Administration panel unanimously ruled the pill known as Ella One appears to be safe for humans.

It lasts longer than the "morning after pill." The one-pill treatment can prevent pregnancy up to five days after unprotected sex. But unlike current available contraception, the Ella One pill prescription would require a doctor's note.

"Every woman deserves a last chance to prevent pregnancy," said James Trussell, director of office of population research at Princeton University.

Critics say the pill is a thinly veiled attempt to get "abortion over the counter."

Such drugs "are just as easily used by men to exploit women," Concerned Women for America President Wendy Wright said.

The pill has already been approved in Europe. The FDA is scheduled to make a final decision to approve the Ella One pill for use in the U.S. by October.