Of course, Grillo is spinning, because it isn't clarifying anything that wasn't already clear to begin with. Blago wrote a law that expanded the existing rule to the pharmacies, and placed the burden of a woman's sexual responsibilities onto the pharmacist."Our regulation says that if a woman goes to a pharmacy with a prescription for birth control, the pharmacy or the pharmacist is not allowed to discriminate or to choose who he sells it to or who he doesn't sell it to," Blagojevich said. "The pharmacy will be expected to accept that prescription and fill it ... No delays. No hassles. No lectures."
Fernando Grillo, head of the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation, said the emergency rule clarifies an existing requirement.
"This rule is in response, a very affirmative and strong response, that we will not tolerate pharmacies and drug stores in the state of Illinois not meeting their obligation to the women of this state in providing them good health care," Grillo said.
This rule was in response to a case in Chicago where a pharmacist refused to provide birth control pills to two women at the Osco Pharmacy in downtown Chicago. According to the Chicago Sun-Times, the pharmacist didn't deny them the contraceptives outright; he only stated that he personally wouldn't sell the contraceptives to them, and asked if they would come back when another pharmacist was on duty. Osco and the American Physicians Association defended the pharmacist, saying that he had a right to evoke the state's "conscious clause".
Blago however stated that the "conscious clause" only counted towards doctors, not pharmacists (as if pharmacists aren't medical personnel as well?), and evoked an order that forced every pharmacist to provide contraceptives whether they liked it or not.
But the decree didn't stop there. The national media (AP, Washington Post, etc) didn't report this:
Hence, the woman's responsibilities are placed onto the pharmacist, despite his moral or religious objection. If he isn't able to provide them the pills, he then has to find it for them.Under the emergency rule, if the contraceptive is not in stock, the pharmacy must order it or transfer the prescription to another local pharmacy of the patient's choice, Blagojevich said. If the pharmacist does not fill the prescription because of a moral objection, another pharmacist needs to be available to fill it without delay.
It shouldn't be surprising that at the press conference announcing this mess (real player required) Blago was huddled around several members of the so-called women's rights and special interest groups from Illinois and Washington were all there to celebrate this declaration. After all, Blago's their boy.
And Blago also announced a probe into the incident, which could result in a heavy fine for Osco or possibly result in the store being shut down...all because of some broads who felt entitled to get birth control pills there and no where else.
Don't get me wrong; I'm for contraceptive use. In fact, I wish people would use it more often, because there's enough bad ass kids in this world with terrible parents. But I also believe in a business's right to reject a patient because of moral beliefs.
Chicago's a big city. You mean to tell me Osco was the only pharmacy to get what she wanted? She couldn't wait for another pharmacist to get there to fill the prescription? Businesses shouldn't be forced by the government to sell something because the governor wants to rub noses with the feminists.
Sexual responsibility lies with the two (or if you're a freak like that, more) people that are engaging in the sexual activity. Period. If you don't have protection, then don't have sex. I don't see what's so hard to understand about that. Instead, we're being led to believe that people are like some jacked-up rabbits that can't control themselves and get knocked up on impulse. I'm not buying that.
And the imposition of several state governments and the federal judiciary - forcing businesses to provide contraception, forcing insurance companies to include contraceptives in their medical coverage - isn't helping a thing. In fact, it's hurting the medical industry more than it's helping, because that's more costs you're placing on companies and more stress you're placing on people in the medical field. People may see this as a little thing at first, but little things have a way of manifesting into big things.
It's no surprise that every two-bit leftist is advocating socialist health care, and more than likely if a Democratic president enters the White House, that will be their first major domestic goal. If that happens, I can see a major exodus of people out of medical school and out of the health care profession entirely.
This is one of the issues that will make or break that goal. Someone in Illinois needs to stand up to Blago and the feminist groups and tell them to get lost. Hopefully it will be the pharmacist they have tried to do a job over. I would like to see this go to the Supreme Court.
