Category: News
Protection of conscience bill introduced in U.S. House of Representatives
The Health Care Conscience Rights Act has been introduced by Congresswoman Dianne Black of Tennessee, Congressman Jeff Fortenberry of Nebraska and Congressman Doctor John Fleming of Louisiana. It is supported by fifty members of the US House of Representatives. The measure, and others like it, are supported by the US Conference of Catholic Bishops. Similarly, a letter sent to the House leadership in late February by 14 members of Congress, 13 of them women,asked that freedom of conscience be legally protected. They wrote, “Congress cannot ignore the relentless assault on the First Amendment right to religious freedom.”
Update on American HHS birth control mandate controversy: February, 2013
Lawsuits against a federal regulation continue to be filed and are at various stages of litigation and appeal. The contested regulation requires employers of 50 or more people to provide health insurance coverage for contraceptives, embryocides and surgical sterilization, even if the employers object to the services for reasons of concience. As a result of the lawsuits and widespread protests, the Obama
administration has proposed amendments to the regulation, which have been rejected as unsatisfactory by its opponents (New York Times). Judges are split on the issue. (Los Angeles Times) (For a map and up-to-date overview of lawsuits filed against the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, see the Becket Fund’s
HHS Information Central.
New York Hospital Agrees to Respect Rights of Pro-Life Nurses
The Foundry
Mount Sinai Hospital in New York has agreed to additional policy and procedure changes to protect the conscience rights of pro-life nurses and other employees as a result of a federal investigation.
In 2009, the hospital allegedly forced a Catholic pro-life nurse to assist in an abortion in violation of the nurse’s religious beliefs. Read more . . .
Letter from Archbishop to Congress seeks support for freedom of conscience
Writing on behalf of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops Ad Hoc Committee on Religious Liberty, Archbishop William E. Lori has asked Congress to pass measures in an appropriations bill. One “clarifies current nondiscrimination laws to improve protection of individuals and institutions that decline involvement in abortion, allowing the victims of discrimination to vindicate their rights in court.” The other merges the Hyde/Weldon amendment with a 1996 law that prevents people from being forced to participate in abortion training.
“We assume no one in Congress opposes the idea that people whose civil rights have been violated have a right to go to court. So this provision should be accepted without serious controversy,” [Text of letter]