Pharmacists Must Dispense Plan B, Other Emergency Contraception In Spite Of Religious Objections, Says Supreme Court


Pharmacists whose religious beliefs prevent them from dispensing Plan B or other emergency contraception must do so or legally be fired from their jobs. Additionally, pharmacies must carry such drugs and dispense them to patients, according to a ruling issued Tuesday by the Supreme Court, the Chicago Daily Herald is reporting.

The case is Stormans Inc v. Wiesman, and it was brought by the owners of a Washington state pharmacy who refused to stock emergency contraception, citing their deeply-held Christian beliefs.

In 2007, Washington state adopted rules that would, theoretically, protect the religious liberties of pharmacists who objected to providing emergency contraception such as Plan B after receiving complaints from several women across the state that they had gone to pharmacies to get the medicine but were denied by pharmacists. The rules required all pharmacies to stock the drugs but allowed pharmacists who object to dispensing the medicine to refer the patient to another pharmacist in the same store.

Plan B, according to the manufacturer, works best when taken within 72 hours of unprotected sex or a contraceptive accident. It works by preventing an egg from being released by the woman’s ovary, by preventing an egg from being fertilized, and/or by preventing a fertilized egg from attaching itself to the uterus.

The manufacturer claims that Plan B does not induce an abortion; however, according to the Washington Post, whether or not Plan B is an abortifacient (a chemical that induces an abortion) is still in dispute in the medical community.

For Ralph’s Thriftway, a grocery store and pharmacy in Spokane, Washingon, owned by a religious Christian family, the rules requiring the pharmacy to stock the drug violated the owners’ religious beliefs, and they refused to stock it. The owners sued.

As the case made its way through the courts, the Washington State Board of Pharmacy argued that its rules were intended as a compromise that protected pharmacists’ religious liberty while still allowing women who need the pill to get their medicine.

“[The rules] accommodate individual pharmacists’ beliefs while fulfilling its mission of ensuring that patients timely receive needed medicines; and second, to ensure timely access to all medications [not just emergency contraceptives].”

The final ruling in the case came from U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit, which ruled in favor of the state. The Supreme Court declined to hear the case, which means that the 9th Circuit’s ruling is the final word on the matter, and its ruling will stand.

In order for the Supreme Court to hear a case, four members must vote to hear it. In the case of Stormans Inc v. Wiesman, only three justices — Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr., Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr., and Justice Clarence Thomas — voted to hear the case.

In a blistering dissent, Justice Alito took his colleagues to task for declining to hear the case, which he said they should have done in order to “ensure that Washington’s novel and concededly unnecessary burden on religious objectors does not trample on fundamental rights.”

“[The] bottom line is clear: Washington would rather have no pharmacy than one that doesn’t toe the line on abortifacient emergency contraceptives.”

Alito also claimed that the Court’s refusal to hear the contraception case has far-reaching consequences for the larger issue of religious liberty in general.

“This court does not deem the case worthy of our time. If this is a sign of how religious liberty claims will be treated in the years ahead, those who value religious freedom have cause for great concern.”

Do you believe that pharmacies should be required to dispense emergency contraception over their owners’ religious objections?

[Image via peerapron kwanprom/Shutterstock]

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