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**FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE**
June 16, 2008
Contact: Sarah Krauss
(212) 669-4193; (917) 541-0936
Release #:22-2008
Gotbaum, Make the Road, Councilmember Gioia: City Pharmacies Must Provide Free, Accessible Language Assistance and Translation Services for Prescriptions
One fourth of New Yorkers are potentially jeopardizing their health because of language barriers when filling prescriptions
MANHATTAN – Public Advocate Gotbaum, along with Councilmember Eric Gioia, advocates, and others today called for city pharmacies to post signs indicating that individuals who speak limited or no English have a right to free, accessible language assistance and translation services when filling prescriptions.
New York City has over 1.8 million residents with limited English proficiency (LEP). Many of these LEP New Yorkers are currently endangering their well-being and putting their lives at risk by taking prescription medications without a clear understanding of the directions and warnings associated with their use.
Public Advocate Gotbaum is working with Councilmember Gioia and advocates to draft a bill relating to the translation of prescription medicine labels and directions for non-English speaking customers. It would require city pharmacies to post signs indicating that LEP individuals have rights to free, accessible language assistance and translation services. This involves providing both oral interpretation services, for the purposes of medication counseling, as well as translation services for written drug materials, such as easy access to translated medication directions, labels, warnings, and patient information sheets.
Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum said, “This is not rocket science. Clearly understanding a prescription you are given is a basic right, yet pharmacies all around the city are allowing New Yorkers to go home with medication they have no idea how to take. It’s not difficult to fix this problem, and as advocates, we can’t continue to allow so many New Yorkers to be put in danger every time they fill a prescription. I look forward to working with Councilmember Rivera to address this wide-spread problem.”
Councilmember Joel Rivera said, "People should not have to start guessing how to administer their prescription just because they don't read the language the directions are written in. The consequences can be devastating. The translation of drug labels by pharmacies is not only a good idea, it is the right thing to do."
Councilmember Gioia said, "The ability to understand one's medication is a basic right that all New Yorkers should enjoy, regardless of what language you speak. In a city where so many languages are spoken its a matter of public safety to ensure that all patients are taking the proper medication in the proper dosage. Its only common sense that we take tangible steps towards ensuring all New Yorkers fair and equal access to directions for their medication."
A number of New York City pharmacies have not been providing adequate translations for prescription medicine labels to their customers. This lack of information has proven to be especially dangerous for large immigrant populations.
A 2006 study of language access in NYC pharmacies conducted by the New York Academy of Medicine found that 88% of pharmacies encountered LEP patients on a daily basis. However, 50% of the pharmacists surveyed never translated prescription labels or translated less than once a week, despite the clear need for this service. Additionally, many pharmacies did not report translating prescription labels even though most of them have the capability to do so.
Public Advocate Gotbaum added, “I applaud Attorney General Andrew Cuomo’s recent actions to protect New Yorkers from purchasing expired medications. All New Yorkers are entitled to access to effective, non-expired medications from pharmacies, just as they are entitled to being able to fully understand instructions about prescriptions and dosage.”
In 2007, Make the Road New York filed a complaint about the lack of translation services at city pharmacies with the State Attorney General’s Office that is still pending. The complaint names 16 pharmacies in Queens, Brooklyn, and Manhattan.
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