Missouri Senate Bill 458 Threatens Pharmacists
Missouri, USA (February, 2005)
FIRST REGULAR SESSION
SENATE BILL NO. 458
93RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
INTRODUCED BY SENATORS
WHEELER AND BRAY.
Read 1st time February 28, 2005, and
ordered printed.
AN ACTTo amend chapter 338, RSMo, by adding thereto one new
section relating to the duty of a pharmacist to fill prescriptions.
Be it enacted by
the General Assembly of the State of Missouri, as follows
Section A. Chapter 338, RSMo, is amended by adding thereto one new section,
to be known as section 338.012, to read as follows
338.012. 1. Pharmacists
have a duty to fill all lawful prescriptions properly. If a pharmacist holds
sincere religious beliefs that are inconsistent with filling any lawful
prescription, such pharmacist shall:
(1) Notify his or her employer or prospective
employer in writing as soon as possible of the prescriptions he or she
refuses to fill; and
(2) Fill the prescription unless his or her employer
can accommodate the pharmacist's belief without undue hardship to the
employer or customers.
2. For purposes of this section the following factors should be
considered in determining what constitutes an undue hardship:
(1) The need of the customer to have the prescription
filled in the equivalent time period as the pharmacy is filling other
prescriptions of in-stock medications or devices at the time such an
accommodation would be made;
(2) The financial cost of implementing such an
accommodation; and
(3) The effect such an accommodation would have on an
employer's reputation or good will in the community.
3. A pharmacist has a duty to treat each customer in a non-judgmental
manner and ensure that each customer is not subjected to indignity,
humiliation, breaches of confidentiality, or pressure to fill or not to fill
the prescription, regardless of whether an accommodation has been
implemented under subdivision (2) of subsection 1 of this section.
4. Violation of the provisions of this section shall subject the license
of the pharmacist to disciplinary action under section 338.055.
5. A person or governmental entity who believes that a violation of this
section exists may make an allegation of that fact to the board in writing.