Should we force pharmacies to sell prescriptions?

Question

After reading this article about pharamcies refusing to sell based on religion:

http://www.medsocial.com/safe/viewblog.aspx?blogaction=viewblog&show=735

I wanted to ask the opinion and help. Is this a valid concern, or should they be required by law to sell to anyone needing prescriptions?

Answer 1

"Should we force pharmacies to sell prescriptions?" - Yes. The states limit the number of pharmacies and regulate them with license requirements. In many locations there is only one pharmacy. If we allow pharmacies which should operate in the public interest to refuse to dispense drugs because of religious beliefs, what is to stop a pharmacy from refusing to sell antibiotics or other life saving drugs?

Answer 2

Think of a pharmacy like a bookstore, they dont have all the books, it will be too costly. But they can order for you if you have a special book in mind. The same with the pharmacy, they can order a product for you. I go to a locally owned pharmacy since I was a child. And the rare times I needed somthing they dont carry I just ordered and the medicine came in less than a week. It will be terribly unjust to force a pharmacy to carry things that do not sell and will just expire. It will cause most of the small ones to go bankrupt. And that will mean that the bigger ones will raise the prices to whatever they like, since there will be no competition.

Answer 3

What a great question. It is one that invariably land in the Supreme Court in my opinion. On the basis of religious and moral reasons, some pharmacists don't want to fill those prescriptions. But, women have the right to get those prescriptions filled. Ultimately, I think market forces will prevail. Some large chain, whether it is Rite Aid or another, will have to decide whether it will demand those pharmacists to fill the prescriptions or at least make sure they are filled by another in a prompt and timely manner.

Answer 4

This is a matter of education according to that country is, in some (few) countries where people is highly educated and know the consequences of selfmedication, may be could be allowed to buy certain drugs without prescription, however, in most of the countries exist abuse in the acquisition of those drugs and the results are catastrophic in the society, this is a decision of the health authorities to determine which medication could be purchased freely and which not. This have become a real public health problem worldwide, and frankly I don´t foresee any solution in a short terms of time.

Answer 5

No. This article is about feminist propaganda. It is about forcing your will on someone else and calling it women's rights. Liberal women think they can do whatever they want and have no consequences. Then use the equality trump card because they didn't get their way. They want sex any time, anywhere, and stay out of my way. And if a baby gets in the way, well that is what abortion is for. They don’t care about God at all. He just gets in the way. Women put themselves above doctors, men, babies, and God. I got a newsflash for them. Eventually it will hurt them as soon as they realize not everyone will fall for it. Pharmacies should not have to do anything against their wishes after all they have their education to back them up. They know more than the woman does. They better know, or they better not be in that job.

Answer 6

As a general rule I dislike having the government telling private parties--individuals or businesses--what to do.

But in this case, yes. The problem is that the goal of these people is not to practice their own religious beliefs--rather, it is to force others to abide by their beliefs. There is also the matter that if we allow this kind of intimidation, you will sooner or later see some of thesereligious fanatics denying drugs that are essential to health,or even kill someone by refusingtoseel medicine they need. Nor can they claim "oh, but that's not the kind of drugs we don't want to sell." By using the force of law to block stem-cell research, they are already doing exactly that. People are going to die because of their actions.

The religious right has the notion that religious freedom appllies only to them--and that they are thereby entitled to force it on others. They are not. If that's the way they want to live, they can always move to some country that tolerates religious dictatorship--like Iran or Saudi Arabia.

Answer 7

You say "needed prescriptions". Birth control, which the article you link to discusses, is not generally a medically needed prescription.

The rights/beliefs of the pharmacists need to be protected, but the people also should be able to get their prescription. A balance between the two needs to be struck. I don't think a law forcing the pharmacist to dispense the prescription is the way to fix the problem.

Answer 8

A recent state court ruling in Illinois states pharmacists, like MDs and nurses, are health practioners and should be protected under the right of conscious clause. Pharmacists have the right to not dispense drugs which contradict their morals. If the ruling holds through to the state supreme court, the emergency rule requiring pharmacists to fill emergency contraceptives will remain unconstitutional.

Answer 9

Yes. Pharmacies should be forced to sell all FDA-approved medications and pharmacists should be fired if they refuse to sell any FDA-approved medication.
These people are forcing their religious views upon others and it should not be tolerated.
If a person, for religious reasons, disapproves of the dispensing of certain FDA-approved drugs, then that person should choose a profession other than a pharmacist.

Answer 10

To me, this would fall under someone else forcing their religious beliefs on me. If you own a business that dispenses prescriptions, you should dispense all of them that are legal. Would this mean that a Catholic Pharmacist could refuse to sell condoms?