Pharmacists are among the "special class" that can get a NY CCW permit.

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Green Lantern

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Found this in a sort of 'professional journal' that we get at the store. Decent article, though sorely "lacking" in some areas.

http://www.drugtopics.com/drugtopic...Article/detail/469160?contextCategoryId=42806

....The robbery problem in New York is such that many pharmacists there carry concealed weapons, according to Craig Burridge, executive director, Pharmacists Society of the State of New York (PSSNY). "Very few groups in New York can get a permit for a pistol, and pharmacists make up one of those groups," he said.
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Hm. I thought that in places besides Mike Bloomberg's Republic of NYC, carry permit's weren't that hard to get. And speaking of Bloomberg, I have a hard time believing that a mayor that does not want off-duty cops carrying would issue a permit to a pharmacist.

...then again, the cop only has his LIFE to protect from vengeful crooks, us people in the pharmacy profession handle a lot of MONEY. :rolleyes:

Like one of Oleg's posters in summation: "Arm bank guards to protect money? OF COURSE! Arm parents to protect their kids? NEVER!"

And if you don't feel like reading the whole article: no, not a peep about how some of the packing pharmacists are almost certainly carrying against "company policy..."

ETA - not a dig against pharmacists that can and do carry for defense, good for them and all things considered they're smarter than those that don't in this day and age. It just irritates me that in some places you have to BE in a "special group' to get a permit. :cuss:
 
NYC Pharmacies will get whats called a Business/Premise permit.... Meaning that the Pharmacist will be able to have the gun on him during business hours and while in that particular establishment.

As far as full NYC carry goes.. no dice!

You need to either a Police Officer, Peace Officer, Federal LEO, Politician, or a celebrity. The average Joe SixPack will not be able to get anything more than a premise permit in NYC.

Upstate NY is a bit different. The pistol permit is a done county by county. I live in Greene County... it's not too hard to get a full carry up here.
 
Oh yeah, I wondered about that (being limited to carrying ONLY in the building during business hours)...

So if a pharmacist comes in on a Sunday to catch up on work and gets robbed (assuming the store is closed on Sundays) - or gets attacked on the way out to his vehicle...if he uses the gun to defend himself, he probably goes to jail...

New York, what a town! :scrutiny:
 
I have a NYC business permit but not a carry. It's such a stupid system. You need to prove to NYPD you move large amounts of cash to get a carry and even then it's limited to certain days/hours. People get mugged every day for relatively small amounts of money but if you move lots of cash but not enough to satisfy the NYPD you are SCREWED.
 
Green Lantern- It's not so much the money the BGs are after as the drugs. A Rph acquaintance of my was killed a few years ago for Dilaudid. Fortunately,so far for the past 40 years (knock wood), I've only had to deal with forgeries. I share your irritation regarding having to be in a "special group" & Oleg certainly made a good point.
 
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And speaking of Bloomberg, I have a hard time believing that a mayor that does not want off-duty cops carrying would issue a permit to a pharmacist.
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Do you have a source for this?
 
back when OxyContin was a big deal
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Still is a big deal. Ditto any other pain med, many psych meds, and the always popular Sudafed/pseudoephedrine. While I have no love for Wal-Mart, I am glad my wife is a pharmacist there instead of some small shop. Criminals are far less likely to try robbing a pharmacy in a large store than a small one. Thankfully, armed robberies of pharmacies are very rare, but it is still a concern; I am wondering if some crooks really know what is in some shops.

When the wife was doing her internships, one place she worked was a special compounding pharmacy. For the uninitiated, compounding pharmacies do things your regular Walgreens, CVS, and Wal-Mart won't. They'll create new dosage forms (crush pills into a solution or make creams, for example) and they handle drugs you wouldn't think a pharmacy would touch (this one handled cocaine for nasal surgeries- and no, I won't say where this place is). The pharmacists there WERE armed (it was a standalone place, and the pharmacist owned it, so no policy to worry about).

I'm amazed we haven't seen more armed robberies of pharmacies- we get to thinking that folks with drug problems go for illegal drugs, but most of them go for regular prescription drugs. However, they tend to be stupid when it comes to getting their fix- bad forgeries tend to be as far as they go.
 
I was talking to the guy that sells body armour in my area and he said Pharmacist buy the most.

jj
 
ummm...how does a gun get to the pharmacy? Do they have to carry it from home, through the city to get there? or does it just miracle itself to the pharmacy?
 
I think Craig Burridge:
- lives in New York City
- says "New York" when he should say "New York City"
- Is ignorant of the difference between upstate and downstate gun laws
 
M2Pilot - my condolences. :(

Do you have a source for this?
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Maybe I wasn't 100% right - looks like Mike only has problems with them carrying in certain places:

http://www.lewrockwell.com/lott/lott13.html

....After a city-council member was recently killed at New York City Hall, Mayor Michael Bloomberg questioned why James Davis, the murdered councilman, would want to carry a gun. Davis, a retired police officer, had a permit to carry a gun, but Mayor Bloomberg found it very troubling: "I don't know why people carry guns. Guns kill people…"

Bloomberg's new solution: Ban off-duty and former cops from being able to carry guns in city hall. Davis was blindsided by the attack and was unable to use his gun to protect himself. The attack was stopped by an on-duty police officer. Yet, it is hard to see why it is possible for New Yorkers to trust an on-duty officer but somehow minutes after he goes off-duty to no longer trust him.
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Still is a big deal.
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This is true, plus the 'tried and true' things like Xanax and hydrocodone. A teenager committed an armed robbery for Ultram (NOT a narcotic, though I hear that they're 're-evaluating' the addiction potential), and killed himself later when the cops caught up with him.

While I have no love for Wal-Mart, I am glad my wife is a pharmacist there instead of some small shop.
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On one hand I would argue that a "mom and pop" store is more likely to be able to set their OWN "policy" on guns, I can see how it would be less appealing to try to plan on escaping a pharmacy located in a very large store, as opposed to just a small building.

And, don't say TOO loudly that the robbers generally want drugs more than money - since officials in "discretionary" states often only care about guarding money, they might yank the pharmacist permits they've issued! ;)
 
This applies ONLY to Registered Pharmacists. "Unregistered Pharmacists" carry whatever weapon they need to defend their turf.:cuss:
 
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:confused: What's an "unregistered" pharmacist? I know the laws vary state to state - here in NC, you HAVE to be licensed and registered with the state board of pharmacy in order to work. This applies to pharmacists AND techs.
 
What's an "unregistered" pharmacist? I know the laws vary state to state - here in NC, you HAVE to be licensed and registered with the state board of pharmacy in order to work. This applies to pharmacists AND techs.
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"Street level, consumer focused pharmaceutical distribution specialist" aka "pushing weight" aka "drug dealer"
 
Hope noone robs them during the 9 to 12 months it takes the NYPD to process the application.
 
On one hand I would argue that a "mom and pop" store is more likely to be able to set their OWN "policy" on guns, I can see how it would be less appealing to try to plan on escaping a pharmacy located in a very large store, as opposed to just a small building.
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That, and a few other items:
1) Security in large stores is generally better (CCTV systems are a given)
2) A large store will have vastly more witnesses to anything that goes on- not just cameras, but where a small pharmacy might only have a very small number of people in it, you can't corral, contain, or execute everybody in a Wal-Mart.

As for policy on firearms, around here the stores need pharmacists rather badly; they aren't going to search you for weapons. While my wife doesn't carry, if Wal-Mart would decide to fire her for any reason she would have a new job lined up and ready to go before they managed to cover her shift for the next day.
 
As for policy on firearms, around here the stores need pharmacists rather badly; they aren't going to search you for weapons. While my wife doesn't carry, if Wal-Mart would decide to fire her for any reason she would have a new job lined up and ready to go before they managed to cover her shift for the next day.
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Ah, sweet irony. Makes me think about going back to school and getting my pharmacy degree - except THEN I'd be disarmed for 6+ years while at college (unless I went to Utah or somewhere).
 
As for policy on firearms, around here the stores need pharmacists rather badly; they aren't going to search you for weapons. While my wife doesn't carry, if Wal-Mart would decide to fire her for any reason she would have a new job lined up and ready to go before they managed to cover her shift for the next day.
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I work in a hospital, state has rules about firearms in house, however if I have
to come in during the middle of the night , well you know.

I occasionally work for a small local pharmacy when they get in a bind. The owner has a shotgun in the corner and one of those big 45colt/.410 revolvers under the counter, and I sometimes carry my .45.

yes, it's nice to know you could have another job in a few hours without much problem.
 
This topic hits home for me. My wife is a pharmacist completing her second year residency. She used to work as a pharmacy technician at a small independant business years ago. She'd come home with stories of drug fiends coming in with forged prescriptions for a whole range of painkillers. There was no on-premise security and nothing that would prevent a determined crazy from leaping over the counter and taking whatever they wished. (And this happened once when a disturbed individual didn't want to wait and *lunged* at her!) Despite all of this I couldn't convince her that she needed to take measures to protect herself. She'd never carry a gun but doesn't have a problem if I do (though I do get razzed about it sometimes). I managed to convince her to carry a can of Fox though that lasted about 2 weeks. :rolleyes: The addicts tend to wait in parking lots until the on duty pharmacist locks up for the night. :mad:

She doesn't work there anymore and I'm grateful that she has decided to persue a specialty she is passionate about - pediatric pharmacy. Her aim is a clinical position in a hospital in-patient pharmacy, possibly in the NICU. It's FAR less likely to be a target for some drug crazed looney. It makes me feel a little better but I still wish she'd take some steps to protect herself. :uhoh:
 
Quote:
back when OxyContin was a big deal

Still is a big deal.
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Dang, didn't know it was still one of the high points. Back from 2003-2005 I worked for the major producer of that drug in the security department. Any given day we had at least one FBI, DEA, etc in the building giving a presentation/speech. One day it was on how to ID forged precriptions, another day was to tell us what signs to watch out for.

Guess I've been out of that loop for too long lol
 
Just to reiterate:
NY State is almost 2 entirely different areas: NYC and the rest of NY State (upstate). I live in Upstate NY, near Rochester. I have a lifetime CCW permit, (doesn't not expire nor need to be renewed). It is valid for me to CCW in all of NY State except NY City and other prohibited buildings/areas like schools or governmental buildings.

I know I am not alone in hoping/wishing that the big apple would just detach itself and become something along the lines of the District on NY apart from Upstate NY which is quite beautiful aside from the horrendous laws/penal codes.
 
Dang, didn't know it was still one of the high points.
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Well, discerning druggies still love Oxycontin, with others preferring Vicodin. Those are probably the two that she sees abused most often. But a bigger problem than the druggies are the plain old jerks. Many druggies tend to be a little circumspect about making a scene (not all of them, but many). However, there is a positive surfeit of folks who love to yell and scream about their drugs not being free/done in 5 minutes/in unlimited supply/all of the above and then some. Those worry me most. I am forever concerned about some guy hanging out in the front after she closes up after discovering that his script is out of refills.
 
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