I was so dismayed earlier this week to hear a Target spokesperson on NPR announcing that Target has decided that they will allow their pharmacists to refuse to fill prescriptions for Plan B, the emergency contraceptive I discuss in the post below. They say this is because there is some debate as to whether or not the egg is actually fertilized when Plan B prevents it from being implanted, and to them, a fertilized egg... even one that hasn't taken hold and begun growing yet... is a human life. So basically, these pharmacists have moral beliefs which lead them to want women to have later abortions, instead of earlier prevention. I find that fascinating!
The fact is that every moment of delay in getting that prescription filled increases the odds that Plan B will be ineffective and a woman will get pregnant. The next fact is that a woman who is seeking Plan B probably doesn't want to be pregnant right then... and will probably wind up seeking an abortion if she becomes pregnant.
Why is it that the people who claim to be so opposed to abortion, try so hard to create more of them?
I bet these same pharmacists have no issues whatsoever prescribing viagra or any other erectile dysfunction drug. It's not the man's problem if the woman gets pregnant, after all.
I wish I could really encourage a boycott, but I know better than to expect most people to think of a woman's issue over the holidays. But, maybe, anyone who reads this might consider shopping elsewhere for a little while... or, maybe, might consider writing a letter to Target to tell them how disgusting you find their policy. Pharmacists are not God. It is not their job to determine the morality of the drugs they prescribe, and if we say it is, where does it end exactly? Can they refuse to prescribe painkillers if they are scientologists? (Oh wait, scientologists don't believe in medicine at all.) Well, you get the idea.
For the record, if you know of anyone who needs fast access to Plan B there are a few options. The first and best is probably the nearest Planned Parenthood. Once I had a condom mishap at 4:30 pm on a Friday... the Planned Parenthood here stayed open for me until 5:30 when I could get there to get it. Obviously, Monday would've been too late. They try really hard to get it to whoever needs it.
If Planned Parenthood is not an option, I recommend contacting them anyways. There is a doctor who prescribes Plan B online, but I cannot find the link... anyone know it? It was covered on NPR a few weeks ago. But I believe if a woman contacted them and said she couldn't get to them, they'd try their very best to find a way to help her anyways.
This issue is near and dear to my heart. Sorry to be so serious, but this is so important, and so simple and basic to me. The abortion pill causes an abortion. Plan B does not. What is so hard to understand about that?
If you'd like to write a letter to Target about this, here is the information:
Target Corporation Headquarters Address
Target Corporation
1000 Nicollet Mall
Minneapolis, MN 55403
Or, email Guest.Relations@target.com
Thanks so much!