Reflections on Pharmacy: I felt really sad when I read this because I know ...

Reflections on Pharmacy: I felt really sad when I read this because I know ...: I felt really sad when I read this because I know what it is like to be in pain. When I had my wisdom teeth removed it was so painful I ha...

Blog reaction to DEA PR:

People respond to incentives. If you fine someone , it's a disincentive. If you can fire someone, it's a disincentive. At first I thought that the millions of dollars in Walgreens fines didn't matter as the company' analysis said "this will only affect share prices by a few cents." This led to many saying that the government did not fine Walgreens enough. Yet, then Walgreens roled out a plan to determine if a drug was "validly written." 

To the non-pharmacy workers of the world this was always a federal and state requirement. There are numerous times I have told patients that they are multiple days early and it couldn't be filled. One patient said to me, "I will have to come back in a day or two in order to pick it up. What's the difference between a couple days?"

The difference is whether I will lose my job. How will this happen? Will the state board feel I was reckless in dispensing? Will a federal agent come in, accuse me of aiding a drug addict? Will the police storm a store or hospital and demand to cuff myself, a subordinate, or a supervisor and take us away?

If I work for Walgreens or CVS will they fire me for dispensing this medicine? Will they say, "Sorry, this is coming out of your paycheck?"