Right of Refusal

There have been several recent cases of pharmacists not filling prescriptions for birth control or the morning after pill because of "moral" beliefs. Two headline cases occurred in Texas, and others have popped up elsewhere in the country, including right here in Wisconsin.

It is my belief that if your religious beliefs interfere with the duties of your job, you are in the wrong line of work. Most of the pharmacists that have been in the news lately have been fired. I'm not saying that people can't have their own beliefs, but if you think those beliefs should trump company policy, you should be fired.

If I worked in a deli and refused to serve ham sandwiches because of my belief that eating pork is wrong, I would be a bad deli employee, and justifiably, I would probably lose my job. Likewise, pharmacists are employed to fill prescriptions, not to impose judgment on others, and if they refuse to fill prescriptions based on personal beliefs, they are bad employees.

I realize, of course, that pharmacists are required to use their conscience when filling prescriptions. The world is full of drug addicts. People will always try to forge prescriptions or increase the amounts of their favorite drugs, and in such cases, I think it's within the job description for a pharmacist to refuse. The problem is, these pharmacists are not drawing the line between their own personal beliefs and their professional ethics. Most company policies already allow pharmacists to refuse to fill a prescription based on religious beliefs provided they allow another pharmacist to fill it, or transfer it to another pharmacy. For me, this policy is too lenient, but for some Christian pharmacists, this does not allow them enough freedom. More legislation to protect their right to refuse is being considered, and unfortunately, the pharmacists are not refusing ham sandwiches, they are refusing the right for women to choose how they live their lives.

It's a good thing condoms are sold over the counter.


Ryan's Lair
Drug Topics