In Milwaukee, Wisconsin, a pharmacist pretending to be a medical professional refused to fill a woman's prescription for emergency contraception. Not satisfied with merely not doing his job, he then proceeded to call her a "baby-killer" and traumatized her to the point that she couldn't bear to go to another pharmacist. Eventually she had an abortion.

The Duluth News Tribune reports (via Feministing):

"The pharmacist crossed the line," said Tricia Knight, the attorney for the woman. "It's one thing to conscientiously object. But you cannot intend to inflict emotional harm on a woman when she is making a very important and often very emotional decision in her life."

The state Department of Regulation and Licensing, which regulates pharmacists and other professionals, opened an investigation into the pharmacist's actions after learning of the incident through news reports last week, agency spokesman Chris Klein said.

I disagree with Knight. It's not "one thing" to refuse to dispense contraceptives and another to berate the women who seek it. Refusal to dispense contraception is done by pharmacists who don't know enough about biology to realize that contraceptives inhibit the implantation of fertilized eggs rather than cause abortion. This ignorance — or lie, if they really do know better — immediately leads them to consider women using contraceptives as baby killers. One follows logically from the other.

If states allow pharmacists to refuse to do their job on the basis of such obvious ignorance (or lies), they will also be allowing pharmacists to be pressured in the long run not to dispense contraceptives, even if they don't personally object to it. They will further be permitting pressure on the women, just like women currently experience when they go to clinics that provide abortion (regardless of whether they are seeking abortion or not).

Let me put it another way, just in case the politicians still don't get it: if you let pharmacists treat contraceptives like abortion, then you are sending the message that it's OK for Christian extremists to treat contraceptives like abortion. This means that all the shouting and harassment which we currently see at abortion clinics will soon be coming to a pharmacy near you.

Don't let the extremists win. Don't let the arrogant, self-righteous jerks decide what sort of medical care women will receive. These people don't have the right or the authority to make decisions about women's bodies and health — they do, however, have moral and legal obligations to do their job and serve their customers. If they refuse to do it, they should have their licenses pulled and denied the ability to work in medicine again.

 

Update: In the forum, Ryan comments:

The pharmacist's name is Michelle Long.

What would I do to her? Take her to a Planned Parenthood along with a video tape of the incident. Play the tape for the health professionals that spend their time cleaning up the messes that people like Michelle contribute to in women's health and then leave her in a room with them.

Doesn't sound like a bad idea...

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