“After using Walmart pharmacy many years to fill my opiod prescriptions, they will no longer fill any opiod prescription solely because my pain management doctor does not have me on a program to wean me off all opiod medications.”
Some people think that this is practicing medicine without a license, but in reality is that the pharmacist is trying coerce the prescriber to change the prescription. If the prescriber “caves” to the request/demand of the pharmacist then the prescription order is being done by a legal prescriber.
If the Pharmacist just flat out REFUSED to fill the prescription without VALID FACTS to justify the denial. Then the Pharmacist could be guilty of denial of care and not following the prescriber’s orders.
Also under the Controlled Substance Act no one can prescribe/de-prescribe a controlled substance without doing in person physical exam of the pt and since Pharmacists do not have the education/training or legal authority to do a physical exam of the pt. So unilaterally changing a pt’s controlled med.. could also be a violation of the Control Substance Act.
Some Pharmacists believe that they can refuse to fill a prescription for ANY REASON… everyone is entitled to their own opinion BUT .. no one is entitled to their own FACTS… and refusal to fill a prescription should be based on facts that filling the prescription will harm the pt. Pharmacist seem to continue to believe this “I can deny anything” because no one has sued them for denying care without a valid/factual reason.
If the Pharmacist arbitrarily decided to changed the directions and quantities on the prescription without consent of the prescriber and decide that the pt was going to be weaned off the opiate(s).. then that would be practicing medicine without a license.
Normally, chronic pain pts collectively takes a “boat load of medications”, so if a Pharmacist is only having a concern about weaning a pt off of a controlled med and none of their other medications then one could argue that could be a discrimination. Generally, the vast majority of pts being prescribed a controlled substance have one or more health issues that would qualify the pt as being part of the protected class under the Americans with Disability Act.
Discrimination under that act is considered a civil rights violation, much like if a pharmacist refused to fill a prescription because he/she did like the color of the pt’s skin, sexual orientation or some other reason that has nothing to do with proper medical care.
Filed under: General Problems
“Discrimination under that act is considered a civil rights violation, much like if a pharmacist refused to fill a prescription because he/she did like the color of the pt’s skin, sexual orientation or some other reason that has nothing to do with proper medical care.”
I’d really, really love to hear from anyone who can come up with a civil rights attorney or org that is actually willing to defend the civil rights of disabled CPPs. I & a number of people I know have repeatedly contacted individuals & groups (from the ACLU on down) & been repeatedly refused. Some have chastised CPPs for not doing anything about these civil rights violations, but –except for Robert Rose Jr, whom I’ve spent some time assisting– I have no clue how to do it when attorneys & groups who supposedly defend the disabled refuse to have anything to do with us, & i have insufficient money to survive, on, forget just hiring an attorney de novo.