Refusing to dispense drugs to kill patients with psychiatric illness
Levenseinde Kliniek complains about uncooperative Dutch pharmacists
Sean Murphy*
In April, 2014, a complaint was made in the Netherlands that some Dutch pharmacists were refusing to provide euthanasia drugs. The complaint led members of the Dutch Parliament from the green party, GroenLinks, to ask for a debate with health minister, and members of other Dutch political parties let it be known that they were also concerned.
According to the news reports, over half the physicians at “the independent euthanasia clinic” had been refused lethal drugs, and 23 percent of 53 pharmacists surveyed reported that they sometimes refused to fill euthanasia prescriptions. It was argued that pharmacists should not be able to refuse drugs needed to kill patients if two physicians had approved the euthanasia request. However, while the law in the Netherlands permits physicians to provide euthanasia, it does not mention pharmacists. [Full Text]