In the U.S., new state laws are giving hospitals, nurses, doctors and pharmacists the right to refuse to offer emergency contraception. · 10:38 Uhr · Gender Trouble · #
In some states, new laws allow pharmacists and other health care providers the right to refuse to supply some medications. This is similar to allowing doctors the right to refuse to perform abortions. For example, Mississippi's new law says pharmacists and other health care workers may refuse to fill prescriptions if doing so conflicts with their religious beliefs. Arkansas and Illinois also have laws allowing pharmacists to refuse EC to patients on religious or moral grounds. South Dakota allows a pharmacist to refuse to fill a prescription if "there is reason to believe it will destroy an unborn child"; the state defines a child's life as beginning at fertilization.
In sharp contrast, California, New Mexico, Hawaii, Maine and Washington now have laws enabling pharmacists to provide EC without a prescription as long as they can provide sufficient counseling to women who request it. But even in these states, individuals often have the discretion to refuse to provide EC.
Meanwhile, Catholic hospitals have their own policies - or lack thereof. Some will provide EC, but only to women who have convinced them that they have been raped. Directive 36, handed down by the Vatican, states that in cases of sexual assault, a woman may receive EC from a Catholic provider. However, many Catholic facilities require a pregnancy test and a full medical exam, which discourages women and, by delaying the provision of EC, reduces the likelihood that it will be effective.
Programming for a corporation: We own what you think
· 10:36 Uhr · Copyright · #
For seven years, programmer Evan Brown has been fighting his former employer for ownership of an idea he came up with.