Walgreens Refuses to Sell Plan B to Men

Via the ACLU comes word that some Walgreen pharmacies in Texas refuse to sell Emergency Contraception to men. Despite a corporate policy that abides by the FDA’s federal guidelines, which state that anyone 17 years and over can purchase the Morning After Pill, when Adam Drake tried to buy the pill in a Walgreens in Houston, the pharmacist turned him down. He went to the manager, but she stuck by her pharmacist and turned Drake away. Let me count the ways this is such a disgusting phenomenon.

First, the ACLU focuses on gender discrimination. This country has a long legal history which prohibits gender discrimination just like this -- for men as well as women. This Walgreens violated Drake’s rights, not to mention federal rules. Beyond legal concerns, there’s the fact that the effectiveness of emergency contraception is time-sensitive. Being in  Houston, Drake was able to go to another pharmacy, but others -- particularly not in urban areas -- may not be so lucky.

So refusing to sell EC to men is dangerous and illegal, but it also embodies the sexism at the root of the anti-choice movement. When Drake complained to Walgreens, a representative told him that "the pharmacist has the right to refuse service, and that the store has an unwritten rule that they will not sell the product to men unless the woman is present because he may give it to an underage person." (Add this to the frustration over the FDA's decision to deny EC access to underage women against any scientific reason.) Sure, technically any person could be planning to get an over-the-counter medication for somebody else who's not supposed to have it.

In other words, Walgreens holds the moral high ground over all women who can’t keep their legs closed and if they don’t want to get pregnant, they should personally make the pilgrimage to Walgreens and pray that they aren’t refused service.

Shame has a lot to do with this policy. Because it’s women’s sexuality that is so threatening, and women’s ability to control when they have children that is so terrifying to the anti-abortion movement, this is yet another attempt to control women. If you really care about shrinking the number of abortions, and if you care about women, then you’ll be happy to give them the medicine that will prevent an abortion down the road. But it’s not about abortion, it’s about control. And the more they try to police women’s bodies, the more they endanger women’s lives.

The ACLU of Texas has written a letter to Walgreens, urging them to make sure this doesn’t happen again and to offer additional training in the matter. Since this isn’t the only time or place Walgreens denied EC to men, it may well not be the last.

Tell Walgreens to put an end to this policy, punish employees who refuse to sell EC to men, and increase training to ensure this never happens again.

Photo credit: ttarasiuk