I have spent 11 hours and a tank of gas today literally driving from one pharmacy to another to fill my wife's prescriptions.
The first stop was our local CVS pharmacy that has been Johnny on the spot for years. A new Pharmacist I don't reacall seeing before simply refused to fill the prescriptions stating it was because of a professional judgment against the doctor. Wow, that sounded serious.
I am an investigator, therefore I checked, and there are no professional judgments or actions against my wife's doctor. So wondering what professional judgment the pharmacist spoke of, I returned.
The pharmacist in a very rude and scolding mannor approached and I explained that there exists no professional judgements or actions againt the doctor in question. She refused again and stated that it was her personal professional judgment to not fill the prescription. I asked based upon what? I asked why, this has been my wife's prescriptions for years, what's suddenly different???
My questions were ignored. She did not say she was out of that particular prescription medication; she just blatently stated that she refused to fill it.
Thus I started my trek thru Volusia County trying to get the prescriptions filled. Visiting every Walgreens, CVS, Publix, Wal-Mart, and any small mom pop pharmacy I could find. Each and every one of them said the same thing.
They say that the FDA has restricted all schedule II drugs and they were out. All on the same day? What specifically does this restriction encompass? Particular doctors, particular medications within the schedule II drugs?
Several of the drugstores, (Walgreens), did indeed have a notice posted in their pharmacy window stating the schedule II drugs restrictions. A standard common notice. Of course schedule II drugs are more restricted because they are greatly abused by drug addicts.
But still, it is statistically and physically impossibly that every pharmacy should run out of a schedule II drug at the same time on the same day. I would ask when their next delivery was... Not one pharmacist could give an answer. I find that very odd that a pharmacist cannot answer that question. Is the pharmacist restricted from giving an answer?
There is something very wrong with this picture.
I called my sister who resides in another county and takes a very similar drug for Lupus pain to warn her of the situation. She immediately called her pharmacy and found that they have received no such special notice concerning the schedule II drugs.
So, one must ask...
Is this some additional local restriction in an effort to fight pill mills? If so, I believe that is great, but, what about the people who are valid confirmable patients under doctors care and dependent upon those medications? Medications that, if refused could cause great harm. The people who suffer very real pain, not to mention the fact that if suddenly denied the medically necessary medication, the results could very well, and do, lead to emergency hospitalization or death.
My wife is a retired doctor. She has suffered for several years with pain from a broken neck, broken ankle, (2) broken wrists and 7 crushed spinal vertebrae resulting in multiple surgeries. At 69 years old, I do not believe she would run down to the street corner to sell the medications she needs.
Could it be that, after all, this frustrating day started because of some pharmacist with a personal vendetta against a doctor she does not like? If so, my wifes medical stability will not be used as a pawn in her game.
At 7 PM I called my wife who was preparing to go to the emergency room to let her know that I had finally found a Walgreens that said Oh, no problem sir, we will have that filled in 15 minutes.
This was serious stess my wife and I need not have endured.
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