CT Mirror | Bill would protect those at religious hospitals who offer care info
Originally Published in the CT Mirror
Medical providers who work for religiously affiliated hospitals or other health care centers and provide counseling or referrals on reproductive care would be protected from dismissal, suspension, or penalties under a bill that is being considered by the legislature’s Public Health Committee.
The measure would shield providers who offer information and counseling about contraception, termination of pregnancy, gender-affirming care and other reproductive health care, and who offer referrals for treatment.
Supporters called the proposal a good next step in the expansion of Connecticut’s protections for reproductive rights.
Legislation passed in 2022 made Connecticut a legal “safe harbor” state for those who travel here from another state to receive an abortion and for the clinicians who perform them. It also expanded the type of providers who can perform first-trimester abortions to include nurse midwives, advanced practice registered nurses and physician assistants.
Last year, lawmakers passed a bill protecting medical providers in Connecticut who face disciplinary action in other states for performing abortions. Under the measure, those providers could not be denied a license, have their license revoked or be denied privileges here based solely on their out-of-state sanctions.
The measure now before the Public Health Committee would not require physicians to provide counseling or referrals but would shield those who want to offer those services.
“While providers at Catholic health institutions may be barred from providing reproductive care and gender-affirming care under the institution’s directives, they can also face employment repercussions simply for giving their patients accurate information about their health and where they can access care,” Liz Gustafson, Connecticut state director of Reproductive Equity Now said in written testimony. “The lack of any information sharing about where else a patient might be able to go to seek care can lead to devastating delays. Patients may not even be aware that a health care facility would deny them both health care services and medically accurate information regarding their health.
“To combat this chilling effect and prevent delays in care, Connecticut can ensure that providers at these institutions who may wish to share medically accurate and appropriate information with a patient about their health status, recommended treatment, or offer possible referrals will not face retaliation.”
In an interview, Gustafson said federal refusal laws pose a threat to people who rely on religiously affiliated health centers, especially in rural areas where there may be few alternatives. She pointed to the proposed acquisition in 2022 of Day Kimball Healthcare in Putnam by Massachusetts-based Covenant Health, a Catholic health system. The sale, which ultimately was canceled, drew opposition, with critics saying it would limit carein the region.
“Our communities understand just how detrimental these refusal laws can be to people’s ability to access care or referrals in certain areas of our state,” Gustafson said.
Connecticut is home to several Catholic hospitals. Trinity Health operates Saint Francis Hospital in Hartford, Johnson Memorial Hospital in Stafford and Saint Mary’s Hospital in Waterbury.
Nancy Stanwood, chief medical officer for Planned Parenthood of Southern New England, said when patients go to the hospital, they should be confident their health care providers are allowed to offer the best care possible, without fear of repercussions.
“During a time when other states have created climates of fear, intimidation and uncertainty for providers caring for patients experiencing pregnancy complications, this bill would make it crystal clear that science, providers and patients are respected and protected in Connecticut,” she said.
“It also would serve to correct an imbalance in how we approach the issue of conscience in medicine. Historically, both federal and state governments have protected negative conscience — that is, protecting health care providers who opt out of providing care that violates their sense of conscience. Conversely, I exercise my positive conscience in my medical practice by providing abortion care, which I see as a human right to dignity and bodily autonomy, and which my conscience compels me to provide. If I were forced not to provide abortion care, I would be morally injured.”
Residents and providers say the bill protects free speech and allows providers to offer the counseling they feel is best.
“In my 31 years of employment at a major academic medical center I’ve worked with countless providers, so I know that they serve the interests of patients as best they can,” David Caplan, of Danbury, said in written testimony. “The ‘system’ often doesn’t make it easy to do so, and the last thing we should want is for them to feel threatened in their professional lives.”
Dr. Iyanna Liles, an obstetrician gynecologist, said she left a faith-based health care facility after three years due to the stress of being unable to provide patients with certain types of services.
“I have worked at a faith-based institution in the past and felt very conflicted about the position it placed me in as an employed physician in direct opposition to the training I had spent eight years developing,” she said. “I even became stressed regarding how I would walk the line of recommending the best practices and care for my patient without losing my job, which would further exacerbate my patients’ access to quality, comprehensive health care.
“After three years in that position, I felt compelled to seek employment in a non-faith-based institution so that I would not be limited in my counseling or provision of full spectrum reproductive health care.”
Melissa Combs, whose child is transgender, urged lawmakers to pass the bill.
“As the parent of a transgender child, thank you for protecting his right to lifesaving medical care and my right as a parent to make informed decisions about his treatments,” she said. “It is unconscionable that this bill is necessary, yet it is thanks to a misinformed minority that spreads untruths, cites faulty science, and refuses to listen to licensed physicians.”
Others opposed the measure.
Officials from the Connecticut Catholic Public Affairs Conference called the proposal a “blatant attack” on Catholic health care and religious freedom.
“[The bill] undermines Catholic hospitals in our state, which operate under ethical and moral guidelines which limit such services,” said Deacon David Reynolds, the organization’s associate director for public policy. “HB 5424 clearly reflects an obtuse viewpoint when it comes to the teachings of the Church on abortion and gender-identity.
“[This] is an effort to weaken the oversight and control Catholic hospitals must maintain over their providers to ensure compliance with the Ethical and Religious Directives for Catholic Health Services under which all Catholic hospitals operate.”
Michael Molgano, a former Republican state legislator, asked lawmakers to reject the bill.
“There are and always will be ethical and religious directives Catholic health care providers and institutions must and will abide by, and I will always strongly urge my representatives to respect and protect them,” he said in written testimony.
Lisa Maloney said she attended the now-closed St. Francis School of Nursing in 1986 because she could “get a great education without compromising my beliefs regarding the sanctity of life.”
“In a state like Connecticut, there are no shortages of places where a woman can get an abortion, there are no barriers to her seeking that type of procedure,” she said. “Catholic hospitals need to be allowed to hold their employees to the standards that align with their beliefs and that employees agreed to when hired.”
Peter Wolfgang, executive director of the Family Institute of Connecticut, said policies at Catholic health care facilities should be respected.
“The language of the bill targets services restricted by protocols established by Catholic health care networks in providing medical services for all patients, including the unborn,” he said. “Today … people are served by the Catholic medical system because they know the providers at a Catholic institution will be consistent in their respect for life. … Care and respect for all people at all times is not just something these institutions put in their brochures; they make sacrifices to uphold it.
“This is one choice among many and the quality care they provide, while being true to their standards, should continue to be respected in our state.”
