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Essay on Fighting Pharmacists, Fulfilling the Prescription

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Fighting Pharmacists, Fulfilling the Prescription

In recent years there has been an influx of women receiving prescriptions for the postcoital pill (PCP) also known as the morning-after pill, Plan B, and a form of emergency contraception. Some pharmacists, however, are exercising their right not to fulfill patient’s prescription, based primarily on their personal values and morals. Amidst the negative overtones, women continue to take the morning-after pill in an effort to maintain their rights.

“Timely access to emergency contraception is critical therefore any delay the woman might experience before taking the medication is unacceptable and places an undue burden on the woman,” said Patricia Conner, Emergency Contraception …show more content…

The morning-after pill is used after unprotected intercourse or when a contraceptive method fails, such as when a condom bursts. It is also used when a woman who takes the birth control pill has vomited and is worried that she may have “lost” the pill and its effectiveness against pregnancy. PCP is proven to be 85 percent effective in the prevention of pregnancies, if the two tablets are taken at the same time within the 72 hours of unprotected sex. Yet, it is important that a woman take the tablets as soon as possible after unprotected sex and not delay until the third day. This may cause the chances of a successful procedure to decline.

The hormones in the PCP stop an egg from being released; they stop a fertilized egg from implanting itself in the womb.

In September of 2004, Suzanne Richards, a resident of Laconia, N.H. was denied her emergency contraception prescription by pharmacist Todd Sklencar, because he was opposed to prescribing something that could end a life. He informed her to transfer her prescription, but did not tell her where to do so. Three days later the pharmacy contacted her and told her that Sklencar had been transferred to a nearby pharmacy, and that she could pick-up her prescription. Unfortunately, it was too late, and Richards was forced to

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