New Jersey Forces Pharmacists to Dispense Abortifacient Drugs Regardless of Conscience

“Does the law require all pharmacies to stock all legal drugs at all times? I think not. Could it do so justly? I think not. Can the law -— justly -— require pharmacists to violate their professional ethics, and fill prescriptions known to be harmful or fatal? I think not.
What is more important: to act legally, or to act justly? The latter.”

Is the drug harmful or fatal to the patient? If the doctor misdiagnosed or misprescribed, then fine, otherwise, it’s the patient’s right to have the prescription filled. The pharmacies don’t have to stock the medications, but if they do, the pharmacists, as licensed by the state, DO have to fill the prescription. If the pharmacists don’t want to fill the scripts, then they need to find employment with a pharmacy that doesn’t stock the items they won’t fill. They still have a legal obligation to send patients to the stores that do, though.

“True, the law should be overturned. But until then, conscientious pharmacists must resist.”

Then they should, and will lose their jobs, and maybe their licenses.

"Is the drug harmful or fatal to the patient? If the doctor misdiagnosed or misprescribed, then fine, otherwise, it’s the patient’s right to have the prescription filled."

Abortion drugs and euthanasia drugs are by definition fatal to at least one of the patients (understanding, of course, that a pregnant woman's doctor has two patients.) Fatal is still fatal, whether it was legally bought and paid for or not. And notwithstanding the unfortunate legality of elective abortion in this country, it is still a violation of the medical profession's ethics, which ought to be at least recognized and honored, if not enforced, by law.

"The pharmacies don’t have to stock the medications, but if they do, the pharmacists, as licensed by the state, DO have to fill the prescription."

The article makes reference to laws which vary fron state to state, and does not make clear whether in some cases or in all cases the pharmacies are obliged to stock lethal drugs. I know that in recent news the government of Chile has taken legal action against 6 major pharmacy chains which declined to carry life-destroying drugs (google news chile pharmacy) --- whether that has happened in some US states I do not know.

"If the pharmacists don’t want to fill the scripts, then they need to find employment with a pharmacy that doesn’t stock the items they won’t fill. They still have a legal obligation to send patients to the stores that do, though."

As I stated above, it's not clear that that's possible, since we don't know whether the pharmacies are in any or every case required to stock the drug.

“True, the law should be overturned. But until then, conscientious pharmacists must resist.” "Then they should, and will lose their jobs, and maybe their licenses"

All the more reason to overturn the law. The church related clinics and hospitals and associated pharmacies (Catholic, Lutheran, Baptist, whoever) should join forces and push for the rights of conscientious objectors.

Odd to think that the Left would join in this defense of conscence if it were a matter of physicians and pharmacists being pressured to assist in administering the death penalty.

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.