A New Jersey woman suffering an asthma attack was denied an inhaler at a pharmacy because she was $1.99 short, MyFoxNY.com reported. Katherine O’Connor and her boyfriend were walking home from McDonald’s in Garwood, N.J., Thursday morning when she had the asthma attack, but she did not have her inhaler with her. She went to a nearby CVS, hoping to get a refill on her inhaler prescription.
But, O’Connor was denied the refill because she did not have enough money to pay for the prescription. The medicine cost just over $21, and the couple was short $1.99.
"I had exactly a $20 bill. It came to $21 and change," said O’Connor’s boyfriend, Jack Brown. "I offered him my cell phone, my wallet. I said, ‘I live right around the corner.’ I come in here all the time."
Brown begged the pharmacist to give his girlfriend the inhaler, as she was on the floor wheezing, but the pharmacist would not give in, he said.
Brown called a friend who is a paramedic, who showed up immediately and treated O’Connor. When questioned about the incident, a store manager had “no comment.”
“The well-being of our customers is our highest priority and we are looking into this matter,” said a statement from CVS corporate offices.
Click here to read more about this story from MyFoxNY.com.