Harm or Mere Inconvenience? Denying Women Emergency Contraception

Authors

Carolyn McLeod, The University of Western OntarioFollow

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

Winter 2010

Source

Hypatia

Volume

25

Issue

1

First Page

11

Last Page

30

URL with Digital Object Identifier

http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1527-2001.2009.01082.x

Abstract

This paper addresses the likely impact on women of being denied emergency contraception (EC) by pharmacists who conscientiously refuse to provide it. A common view—defended by Elizabeth Fenton and Loren Lomasky, among others—is that these refusals inconvenience rather than harm women so long as the women can easily get EC somewhere else nearby. I argue from a feminist perspective that the refusals harm women even when they can easily get EC somewhere else nearby.