Will Your Prescription Be Filled?

It might turn out to be the question of the month. Who knows more, your physician, or your pharmacist? Who should have control over your health care, your physician,  your pharmacist, or a state regulator?  It may be something to think about if you, or someone you know, is being treated for the COVID-19 virus. There are indications that some medications, sometimes in concert, may help combat the COVID-19 virus.  Some have entered clinical trials. Not everyone accepts they can, or will work. That includes pharmacists and the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, or LARA.  LARA administrators claim some doctors are inappropriately prescribing medications for COVID-19 patients. Some pharmacists in Michigan are now beginning to challenge those prescriptions. The CEO of the State Pharmacist’s Association is Larry Wagenknecht. He says if pharmacists don’t agree with a physician’s prescription, they can and will refuse to fill it. And the state agency may then review a physician’s recommendations for possible oversight action. This may turn out to be a whole new element of health care not previously encountered at this level. Medical professionals and government regulators challenging each other over who knows more - with you, or someone you know stuck in the middle…and professional livelihoods at stake.