SEATTLE, Washington — Pharmacies in Washington State must provide emergency contraceptives such as the morning-after pill even if such services violate their conscience, according to a federal appeals court ruling July 23.
“Today’s decision is unfortunate,” said Luke Goodrich, deputy general counsel of the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty. “The government has no business punishing citizens solely because of their religious beliefs.”
The decision in the case — which concerned Ralph’s Thriftway in Olympia and two pharmacists — overturned a 2012 district court ruling that said the state’s regulation violated the pharmacy owners’ religious freedom. The regulation allows pharmacies to refer patients elsewhere for a wide variety of business, economic and convenience reasons — such as when a drug is unprofitable, attracts an undesirable clientele or falls outside the pharmacy’s chosen business niche. But it makes it illegal to refer patients for reasons of conscience.
(Becket Fund, TAB)
Share with others: