A reader’s girlfriend tried to buy Plan B yesterday, but the Oxford, MS Walgreens pharmacy seemed to go out of their way to make it has hard as possible. Mere incompetence doesn’t explain what happened. Instead, it sounds more like a consciously decided system of policies designed to discourage people from buying the pill…
The reader writes:
I live in Oxford, MS, and my girlfriend and I researched the availability of Plan B in this state. We knew there might some puritanical problems with purchasing it here in Mississippi – we have all kinds of arcane alcohol laws and only one abortion clinic in the state, after all – and from what we could tell, a pharmacist can refuse to sell Plan B to a woman on religious/moral grounds. But otherwise pharmacies do carry it, and it should be available to a woman as long as she can prove she is over age 18. As this is a university town and a top-ranked party school, we supposed it wouldn’t be as hard to get Plan B as in other really small, ultra-conservative rural towns. And we also figured that a corporate pharmacy such as Walgreens would be less troublesome to deal with than a mom-and-pop one.
Well, the other day we decided to be extra-safe and to get the Plan B pill from Walgreens here in town. My girlfriend went and requested Plan B, equipped with the knowledge that it’s a non-prescription drug available with ID. She said the pharmacy worker started asking for proof of insurance in order to get the pill. My girlfriend refused and asked to speak to someone in charge. The pharmacist then came, and my girlfriend told him she simply wanted Plan B and that her ID should be good enough. The pharmacist then went about getting the pill, but they also seem to have a policy, a lá abortion clinics, of forcing a waiting period of an hour and giving adoption literature to the person requesting the contraceptive. Now, Plan B is just an additional spermicide, not an abortion pill, but that’s another can of worms. In the end, my girlfriend demanded the Plan B immediately, and she got it, but not without a fair amount of interference on Walgreens’ part. They also insisted on writing down her driver’s license number.
I’m wondering how much trouble other people may have had with Walgreens (or any other pharmacy) over acquiring Plan B. There are several other Red States that make allowances for the pharmacists’ “moral concerns” to get in the way of getting Plan B. What are our rights in getting this pill right away? Walgreens’ website didn’t indicate that they could possibly get all high-and-mighty with her when she went to make the purchase. Could they also get uppity when you buy other kinds of contraception?
(Photo: Monotasker)
More From Consumerist
-
There’s A Thin Line Between Having Fun At Time Warner Cable’s Expense And Just Being A Jerk
-
Report Claims Many Walgreens Sales Items Are Out Of Stock, Mislabeled
-
Now At Walgreens: Stocking Stuffers For Your Easter Stocking
-
Where’s The Best Place To Get Drugs For Your Pet? The Human Pharmacy
-
Watch Out For Photocopied Fake Discs In Your Local Redbox Kiosk
I work for a Walgreens pharmacy as a technician, and this person should complain to corporate about this. This is a personal thing with that tech and that pharmacist and they need to lose their jobs over this. I work in Alabama, and I never give anyone a hard time about buying Plan B. I ask for an ID, as the law requires, and sell it to them with a smile and a “have a good day” just like I sell everything else. I applaud people who buy Plan B, especially in a Bible-thumping state like Mississippi or Alabama. These two individuals need to lose their jobs over this. Walgreens does not, in any way, promote this type of behavior and I am very sorry that this happened, on behalf of the company.
i’m fairly certain that walgreens corporate policy doesn’t allow for pharmacist refusal (i don’t know for certain, as i don’t work for walgreens, but for what it’s worth, they are based in illinois, which i thought was one of the first states to condemn pharmacist refusal). i’ve never had an issue with them myself, and i buy birth control there every month. although i’m in ohio, and in a fairly moderate city.
First of all, why would you waste time researching the availability of Plan B. It has been over the counter for about 2 years. My girlfriend and I have bought Plan B at that Walgreens before without a bit of trouble. Perhaps a new employee or some intern did not know that Plan B was available OTC. It would be nice to know the date of this alleged incident. The staff at that store have been nothing but nice to me every time I have been in there. And also, keep in mind that retail pharmacies can get very hectic. Pharmacies have other business besides selling the morning after pill. Nobody I know has ever had trouble buying Plan B there. I think this person is full of shit.
A link to this story was posted at Feministing.com, who encouraged their readers to call and complain to Walgreens corporate offices.
According to comments left on the Feministing website, Walgreens Corporate contacted some of those Feministing readers who had taken the time to call Walgreens Corporate to complain. Walgreens said they investigated the allegations made on the Consumerist website and found they were unsubstantiated.
I hope that Consumerist will pursue this further with “Michael”, the person who originally posted this complaint.
I live in Oxford, MS, and word is spreading around town today like wildfire about this. I just called and spoke to the pharmacy manager, and he immediately said “it did not happen–that is totally untrue–somebody is trying to get us on the internet.” He’s obviously getting calls. Is there a way for us to confirm that this happened, so we can stick it in this guy’s face? I have no doubt it happened.
I’VE BEEN READING ABOUT THIS TYPE OF RELIGIOUS INTERFERENCE AT LOTS OF PHARMACIES. PLEASE KEEP REPORTING WHICH BUSINESSES ARE USING SUCH TACTICS. I WILL NOT SHOP AT WALGREENS EVER AGAIN. MAYBE IF ENOUGH RETAILERS GET BOYCOTTED THEY’LL GET THE MESSAGE.
I have lived in Oxford for a long time and this is the first time I’ve heard of anyone getting grief buying Plan B. Being a college town, Oxford probably goes through a lot of it! My friends and I have purchased plan b at that walgreens as well as the local Wal-mart and I have not have a single problem with either anyone refusing my request or even so much as getting a dirty look. Again, we are a college town. It’s not an unusual occurrence. Must be some new hot shot evangelist-y pharmacist they hired.
Seems limited to wary management/pharmacist lawsuit concerns. I also live in Oxford and think this is a little distorted. I know(from experience) it is readily available at the university health center, with a few questions as in “have you used this recently? You know it should be used sparingly?” without any hassle.
My sister is a pharmacist for CVS and the threat of lawsuit is something she has to be paranoid about, constantly. The driver’s license act? It’s a means of identification, usually taken after a customer has been “difficult” or raised “suspicious behavior” that would indicate they may possibly be ready to abuse a drug (or in this case) pass it on to a minor. When your gf refused the proof of insurance, that may have raised some “where is this pill actually going to go?” questions.
Yeah, and Mississippi is not a backwards place. Get over that argument, move on.
I understand you may have felt like it was “None of their damn business!” and that maybe it was some kind of puritanical throw back, but it seems more like a pharmacists worried about controlling inventory. Don’t pitch a fit in front of the pharmacist next time, and maybe you won’t get flagged. Plan B has side-effects and some pretty gnarly interactions.
I’m a pharmacy tech at Walgreens in Washington state, we don’t cause any hassles when we sell Plan B. If customer looks too young I look at her or his ID only to check date of birth. Much like selling cigarettes to young looking people. No problem. I do however ring up the item and paper bag it as discreetly as possible in case others are close by. Frankly it is much more difficult to buy Sudafed type products. Perhaps it is a regional thing because it is not a Walgreens thing to pass judgement on someone for their private choices.
Has anybody noticed that no media or newspapers are reporting this? It’s because it is not true. Nothing about it can be verified. I work at that Walgreens. There is no new pharmacist. Ask anyone who has actually bought the pill there if they were harassed. People need to get their facts straight before reporting and posting stuff like this. And thanks to whoever posted the phone number..now patients have to wait even longer to get their medicines if we are constantly on the phone defending ourselves. I swear on my life that this did not happen. If we are harassing people for buying Plan B, why would be selling so many boxes per week? Whoever made this false allegation should be sued.
I (a male) bought Plan B at a Walgreens in Ohio with no trouble at all. The pharmacist was very friendly and helpful.
Clearly, these are person-by-person situations, if the pharmacist has certain beliefs. Anyway, Walgreens shouldn’t get the bad press on this, but only the Oxford, MS branch.
This “right” for a pharmacist to refuse to dispense any medication on a religious or moral basis is nationwide and is by no means limited to MS or the south. PLEASE BE AWARE that nfortunately, one of Mr. Bush’s last “stabs” while in office has been to also extend this policy to ANY type of medical treatment from ANY medical professional – even paraprofessionals. Everyone should look this up and start writing letters of outrage at this. I would always recommend Planned Parenthood to avoid this judgmental attitude from supposed professionals. The closest one to Oxford, MS is in Memphis, TN – a bit of a drive, but worth it.
I work for Walgreens, spent about a year in pharmacy… and no, this story in no way reflects our policies. If there was propaganda literature, that pharmacist brought it from home or something, because we don’t do that. We are supposed to be a medical provider, not a sunday school, and there is no excuse for the horrible treatment you received. Please, on behalf of every employee who actually wants to provide good service… complain to corporate about these people. A pharmacist who would place their religious beliefs above their obligation to help the public has no business working here. This kind of story reflects poorly on all of us, and forces us to work that much harder to win back people’s trust. Don’t let them get away with it!!