Pharmacists Shouldn't Withhold Prescriptions

On the fringes of social conservatism is a growing number of pharmacists refusing to fill birth control pills, as reported by the Washington Post.

There are pharmacists who will only give birth control pills to a woman if she's married. There are pharmacists who mistakenly believe contraception is a form of abortion and refuse to prescribe it to anyone. There are even cases of pharmacists holding prescriptions hostage, where they won't even transfer it to another pharmacy when time is of the essence.

The entire point behind the rule of law is to balance opposing societal interests and create a uniformed system that provides the most good for the most people. It is simply unacceptable for a pharmacist to feel that he or she has the authority to impose their moral beliefs in lieu of the established law. Birth control is legal. No one should have the right to deny its distribution.

But state governments are actually passing laws to protect pharmacists from losing their jobs or being sued for refusing to fill or transfer prescriptions. That’s wrong. What state governments should be doing is passing laws prohibiting pharmacists from subverting the rights of patients.