I never comment on this sub, but I do read from time to time, and there are some things that need to be clarified here.

1) We have no idea what the directions said. The pharmacist could have had a totally legitimate reason for needing to clarify with the physician. Filling the prescription as written or without clarification could have put the pharmacist in a legally actionable position. Hence the "there's nothing I can do." However, she probably could and should have worked harder to contact the doctor.

2) It's never a good idea to wait until last minute to fill your prescriptions, for anything, ever. Because things like this happen.

3) The woman assumes, with no real basis, that the pharmacist denied her prescription on moral grounds. I do not think that healthcare providers should be able to deny any service on religious grounds. But there is no evidence that this is what happened here, beyond "a look of disdain". A look that can be explained by a frustrated pharmacist who has a distraught woman sobbing in her lobby, because she waited to get a time-sensitive prescription filled.

In my years working as a pharmacy technician, I saw more than a few patients turned away or delayed with necessary prescriptions because the pharmacist's hands were tied. There were cases where a prescription for important things came in (like nitroglycerin), with wrong directions. The pharmacist knew EXACTLY what needed to be corrected, knew the patient's previous information, and knew the patient desperately needed it. But she could not fill it until the doctor got on the phone with her, or sent a fax, and approved the correction.

I am so sorry this woman went through this, and the pharmacist could (and should) have been more caring and sympathetic, but this more than likely is not a case of a moral crusader, but a burnt out pharmacist with her hands tied.

TL;DR: Don't wait to fill important meds. Legal things sometimes happen that can't be controlled. Empathy fatigue/burnout can make healthcare providers assholes.