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Alden Pellett/AP
More Drugstores Refusing to Sell Contraceptive Products
June 17, 2008 11:16 AM
by
Liz Colville
A number of new drugstores opening up in the United States do not stock contraceptives or fill birth control prescriptions.
30-Second Summary
A drugstore opening in Chantilly, Va., this summer is part of a growing trend of pharmacies choosing not to carry contraceptive products or to fill birth-control prescriptions, The Washington Post reports.
The trend comes on the heels of a growing number of individual pharmacists practicing their beliefs in the workplace by refusing to fill prescriptions for contraceptives such as morning-after pills.
State regulations addressing the rights of pharmacists to refuse to dispense certain prescriptions vary widely in scope and language.
Many follow the American Pharmacist Association’s policy, which states that a pharmacist may refuse to fill a prescription, provided that he or she then refers the customer to a fellow pharmacist or a different pharmacy. A few states mandate that pharmacists fill all lawful prescriptions.
At the same time that reproductive rights advocates are criticizing pharmacists who refuse to fill prescriptions, conservative groups are objecting to proposals for new clinics in schools that offer a full line of contraceptive products to school children as young as 11.
The trend comes on the heels of a growing number of individual pharmacists practicing their beliefs in the workplace by refusing to fill prescriptions for contraceptives such as morning-after pills.
State regulations addressing the rights of pharmacists to refuse to dispense certain prescriptions vary widely in scope and language.
Many follow the American Pharmacist Association’s policy, which states that a pharmacist may refuse to fill a prescription, provided that he or she then refers the customer to a fellow pharmacist or a different pharmacy. A few states mandate that pharmacists fill all lawful prescriptions.
At the same time that reproductive rights advocates are criticizing pharmacists who refuse to fill prescriptions, conservative groups are objecting to proposals for new clinics in schools that offer a full line of contraceptive products to school children as young as 11.
Headline Link: ‘“Pro-Life” Drugstores Market Beliefs’
The Washington Post writes in a June 16 article that “pro-life” pharmacies are “emerging at a time when a variety of health-care workers are refusing to perform medical procedures they find objectionable.”
Source: The Washington Post
Background: Refusing to fill birth control prescriptions
In 2005, USA Today reported on pharmacists refusing to fill birth control prescriptions and how states were reacting to such activity. The article notes that the American Pharmacist Association allows its members to refuse to fill prescriptions, but they must hand over the prescriptions to a colleague.
Source: USA Today
The debate has extended to the realm of Plan B, the emergency contraceptive that has been denounced by the Pope and pro-life groups. The “refuse and refer” policy advocated by some states requires pharmacists to refer prescription holders to another pharmacy; abortion rights advocates argue that any delay impairs the ability of Plan B, a high-dose form of a birth control pill, to work effectively.
Source: ABC News
Opinions & Analysis: Levels of access to birth control methods
At the opposite end of the spectrum from so-called “pro-life” drugstores are proposals such as a recent Maine initiative for schools to offer a full line of contraceptive products for students as young as 11. A Maine high school last year introduced a health center to provide supplies and educational materials for the “very few kids” at the school known to be sexually active—13 percent. Students must have written parental permission to be treated at Maine’s school-based health centers, but state law allows them to seek confidential health care. Some believe this policy encourages teenagers and preteens to engage in sexual activity.
Source: The Portland Press Herald
South Dakota became the latest state to support pharmacists’ right to refuse with the passing of a bill in February. One supporter of the bill, Deb Fischer-Clemens of Avera Health, said pharmacists “need the legal right to follow their consciences,” whereas Sen. Ed Olson, R-Mitchell, said women “need to make birth control decisions without interference by government, and access to birth control can help reduce abortions.”
Source: Sioux City Journal
A 2004 article in the Guttmacher Report on Public Policy notes that medical and technological advancements might be fueling the birth control debate. Adam Sonfield writes that “the refusal clause debate has spread to a larger range of health care activities and participants. Much of the new momentum comes from the advent of technologies and medical practices that some Americans find objectionable.” This includes in-vitro fertilization, and stem cell research.
Source: Guttmacher Report on Public Policy
The American Civil Liberties Union discusses the state-to-state differences regarding pharmacy prescription policy. Its report, “Religious Refusals and Reproductive Rights: Accessing Birth Control at the Pharmacy” uses specific examples from several states to show how language and specific scenarios governs rulings on pharmacists’ and patients’ rights, including whether a pharmacist’s job is protected by right to refusal.
Source: American Civil Liberties Union
The American Civil Liberties Union discusses the state-to-state differences regarding pharmacy prescription policy. Its report, “Religious Refusals and Reproductive Rights: Accessing Birth Control at the Pharmacy” uses specific examples from several states to show how language and specific scenarios governs rulings on pharmacists’ and patients’ rights, including whether a pharmacist’s job is protected by right to refusal.
Source: American Civil Liberties Union
Reference: Women’s health
The findingDulcinea Web Guide to Women’s Health has a section on women’s reproductive health that highlights the Web’s best resources for information on fertility, birth control, pregnancy and more.
Source: findingDulcinea
© 2009 Dulcinea Media, Inc.
