Catholic pharmacist fights for conscience clause, right to refuse to provide abortion drugs

Calgary, Canada, Oct 14, 2004 / 22:00 pm

Calgary pharmacist Maria Bizecki, who had been fired for refusing to fill prescriptions for the morning-after pill, says Catholics must resist the social engineering aimed at the destruction of human life, reported the Western Catholic Reporter.

"If we are not persistent and don't challenge (pro-abortionists), then we are forced to live by their morals," she told 75 people, attending a fundraising event to support freedom of conscience causes Oct. 12.

Two years ago, Bizecki became the subject of an internal review by the Alberta College of Pharmacists after she refused to dispense the morning-after pill and other products to which she is morally opposed.

Late last year, she reached an agreement with the college and her employer, Co-op Pharmacy, that allows her to decline filling prescriptions designed to cause an abortion. The agreement is a victory of sorts for pro-life pharmacists.

Bizecki, who is active with Concerned Pharmacists for Conscience, has been working to develop a conscience clause for pharmacists since 1996. Pharmacists are not dispensing machines, says Bizecki, but highly trained professionals with ethical and moral accountability.

"If you haven't noticed, there is a big fight that's going on in the world today and that's Christ's fight, not our own fight," Bizecki told the group.

Archbishop Thomas Collins praised Bizecki for her stand and said her actions are an example for the whole Christian community.