Court Upholds Reprimand of Pharmacist Who Refused To Fill Prescription

In Noesen v. State of Wisconsin Dept. of Regulation & Licensing, (WI Ct. App., March 25, 2008), a Wisconsin state appellate court upheld the state Pharmacy Examining Board’s decision reprimanding a pharmacist who refused, on religious grounds, to fill or transfer a customer's prescription for oral contraceptives. The court rejected pharmacist Neil Noesen's argument that his right of conscience, protected by the Wisconsin Constitution (Art. I, Sec. 18), was infringed. The condition imposed by the Pharmacy Board for Noesen's violation of the required standard of care merely required Noesen, who works through a pharmacist placement agency, to make his religious objections known to his employer before he begins at any pharmacy. The court said that this will facilitate rather than burden Noesen's ability to exercise his conscientious objection. AP yesterday reported on the court's decision.