A bill passed yesterday by the New Jersey legislature requires pharmacists to fill all prescriptions, even if doing so violates the religious or personal beliefs of the pharmacist.
The bill passed with a vote of 56-18. Currently it only awaits the signature of Gov. Jon Corzine in order to become law, as it was already passed by the Senate last June.
The official text of the bill reads: “A pharmacy practice site has a duty to properly fill lawful prescriptions for prescription drugs or devices that it carries for customers, without undue delay, despite any conflicts of employees to filling a prescription and dispensing a particular prescription drug or device due to sincerely held moral, philosophical or religious beliefs.”
The legislation also ensures that pharmacists are unable to escape the issue by not stocking controversial drugs—as some pharmacists have done in other states—by specifying that if a pharmacy does not have the prescribed drug or device in stock, then the pharmacy must either order the drug or device for the patient, or refer the patient to another pharmacy that is able to fill the prescription.Assemblywoman Linda Stender (D-Union), who introduced the bill, defended the piece of legislation saying, “Democracy guarantees us the right to hold our own moral or religious beliefs, but under no circumstances should a pharmacist’s personal beliefs impede a patient’s ability to obtain their prescribed medicines…For any pharmacists to knowingly prevent access to health care is almost unconscionable.”
In other words, you can BELIEVE anything you want to. You just can't LIVE according to your beliefs. The ultimate privatization of faith...
Pharmacists have no right of conscience but customers have a new right -- the right to force an unwilling pharmacist to help them.
Freedom takes another hit in the hands of 'blind guides.'
