KMART ASSURES FEMALE CUSTOMERS THAT THEIR HEALTH CARE NEEDS WILL BE MET
Company Responds To Challenge Issued By NARAL Pro-Choice Arizona Phoenix, AZ –Kmart issued a letter in response to NARAL Pro-Choice Arizona’s challenge to outline its corporate response to a pharmacy manager at its Tolleson store who advised other pharmacists to refuse to fill women's prescriptions for birth control by lying to them. In a letter to NARAL Pro-Choice Arizona Kmart Director of Pharmacy Human Resources, Howard A. Kramer, outlined Kmart’s policies regarding pharmacist denying legally prescribed medications. “Under no circumstances is it Kmart’s policy that a customer be forced to leave the pharmacy without the timely filling of a valid prescription because of the ethical, moral or religious grounds of the pharmacist on duty. If there is no way to accommodate the objection without resulting in an untimely delay to the customer, our policy requires the pharmacist to fill the prescription notwithstanding his or her objection. Depending on the circumstances, a pharmacist’s violation of these policies can result in disciplinary action up to an including termination.” The letter also stated that appropriate action had been taken towards the employee but declined to elaborate. NARAL Pro-Choice Arizona State Coordinator Heather Terrell said, “We commend Kmart for taking a lead role in assuring its female customers that their health care needs will be met. It’s ridiculous that, rather than helping to prevent unintended pregnancies, there are many who are seeking to make access to birth control more and more difficult. We are pleased that Kmart has taken appropriate action in this matter, and appreciate their assurances that their pharmacists will observe the highest ethical standards.” In an April 15 letter to the Arizona Republic pharmacy manager Dan Gransinger wrote “The pharmacist should just tell the patient that he is out of the medication and can order it, but it will take a week to get here. The patient will be forced to go to another pharmacy because she has to take these medicines within 72 hours for them to be effective.” Contact: Heather Terrell at (480) 834-3274.
| 
