Bill would let pharmacists refuse service (TX)

Fort Worth Star Telegram ^ | 11/29/2004 | Mitch Mitchell

[jtminton]

The first of possibly several bills seeking to let Texas pharmacists "just say no" to filling prescriptions for emergency contraceptives has been filed before the legislative session that begins in January.

Groups opposing the bill, as well as the bill's author, said its language will probably change during the legislative process to accommodate concerns people have.

In its current form, the bill would allow pharmacists to refuse to dispense some birth-control pills. The definition in the bill of emergency contraceptives, commonly called the morning-after pill, also fits some nonemergency contraceptives, or birth-control pills.

That would not sit well with members of the Texas Abortion and Reproductive Rights Action League, an organization spokeswoman said. "This bill would cause women to have to roll the dice every time they went to have a prescription filled," spokeswoman Sarah Wheat said.

The new legislation was filed to allow pharmacists the same protections other Texas health care professionals enjoy, said its author, state Rep. Frank Corte Jr., R-San Antonio.

Pharmacists are worried that they may face repercussions if they choose to follow their conscience and refuse to serve a customer on moral or ethical grounds, Corte said. But if the bill is passed, it should not stand between a woman and her health care needs, he said.

"Our intent is to affect the prescriptions that terminate pregnancies, that's what most of the pharmacists are concerned about," he said. "We have pharmacists who have received ultimatums from their employers."

In January, pharmacists at an Eckerd Drug Store in Denton denied a morning-after pill to a rape victim. Three pharmacists were fired as a result of that incident. In March, a CVS pharmacist in North Richland Hills refused to fill Julee Lacey's prescription for birth control pills.

The pharmacist told Lacey that she did not believe in any form of birth control and advised her to go to a nearby Walgreens for assistance, said Lacey, of Fort Worth. Lacey remembers being frustrated about the incident.

"I entrust my care to my physician, not my pharmacist," Lacey said. "We have to consider what could happen if this should go any further. There are some people who don't believe in transplants. I just want to know where they are going to draw the line."

The morning-after pill is a higher dose of regular hormonal contraception that works to prevent pregnancy if taken within 72 hours after intercourse.

When the bill's language is refined, it should only refer to the morning-after pill, said state Rep. Charles Hopson, D-Jacksonville. Hopson, who is also a pharmacist, said the bill needs to clearly state that patients will be presented with an alternative if a pharmacist refuses to serve them.

"Some of the big chain stores are comfortable with the concept, but they would like to know which pharmacists will fill all prescriptions and which ones will not," Hopson said. "They also want to make sure that there is some alternative for the patient."

This bill, and similar legislation passed or recently proposed in about a dozen other states, discriminates against women, said Rachel Laser, senior counsel with the National Women's Law Center in Washington, D.C.

"If you go into a profession to assist the medical needs of people, you are not in a position to single out women just because you believe a prescription is something other than what the FDA [Food and Drug Administration] says it is," Laser said. "Women find the experience of being denied a prescription humiliating and demoralizing."

Texas Pharmacy Association policy calls for pharmacists to discuss concerns about dispensing prescriptions with their employers before refusing service to a patient, said Jim Martin, the association's executive director.

Pharmacists should make arrangements to ensure customers can get their prescription filled, even though one pharmacist may object to filling a prescription for a specific drug, Martin said. The association has not formulated a position on this legislation, Martin said.

But, "Our position is that a pharmacist has a right to fill or not fill a prescription," Martin said.

The Texas Alliance for Life supports the legislation, said Joe Pojman, executive director.

"My basic concern remains that the pharmacist ought to be able to conscientiously object to participate in something that is the potential taking of human life," he said. "I'm very concerned that women get the proper health care, but I'm also concerned with the health care providers."

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ONLINE: To read the bill, go to www.capitol.state.tx.us; Texas Pharmacy Association, www.texaspharmacy.org Mitch Mitchell, (817) 390-7420 mitchmitchell@star-telegram.com

[Oztrich Boy]

"We have pharmacists who have received ultimatums from their employers."

Like "Do the job you were hired to do or hit the road"?

[ellery]

This is more government interference into private sector matters. Employers should decide whether their employees can or cannot refuse to fill prescriptions. Employees can choose to work for shall-prescribe employers, or they can choose not to do so.

[wmichgrad]

I thought that it was against federal law to fire someone for refusing to perform a task that was against their religious beliefs. Am I mistaken?

[An American In Dairyland]

Like "Do the job you were hired to do or hit the road"?

Pharmacists are hired to dispense medications, not to assist in abortions. Let the chicks go to Planned Parenthood for all of their abortion "needs."

[Proud_texan]

I don't know if it's a religious belief but several pharmacists I've spoken to about it believe that it is contrary to the pharmacists oath and thus won't do it for that reason.

Parenthetically most companies respect that oath and give the pharmacist complete and total discretion in terms of filling or not filling a prescription.

Kinda nice to see that some still think an oath actually means something...