ACLU attacks US Catholic hospitals, saying 'health care' is restricted
May 09, 2016
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has launched a campaign against Catholic hospitals, charging that the health of patients-- especially women-- may be endangered by the US bishops' health-care directives.
Noting that Catholic institutions account for one of every six hospital beds in the US, the ACLU remarks that Catholic institutions are generally forbidden to perform abortions and sterilizations or to euthanize patients: procedures that the ACLU defines as forms of "health care" Thus the ACLU report concludes that "health care" is not always available at US hospitals because of Catholic teachings.
"When hospitals prevent doctors from providing care, the hospital is illegally imposing itself into a doctor-patient relationship," said Ruth Dawson, an ACLU attorney. The ACLU announced plans to have attorney take action against Catholic institutions, so that courts (rather than hospitals) would determine which medical procedures should be provided.
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Further information:
- Health Care Denied at 550 Hospitals Because of Catholic Doctrine (Forbes)
- eport: Expansion of Catholic facilities leads to denial of women's health services (ABC)
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Posted by: Faustina01 -
May. 09, 2016 11:54 PM ET USA
Note to ACLU: Killing people off, EXCUSE ME, IS NOT HEALTHCARE!!! I rather like the old-fashioned idea of hospitals actually caring for all people, not just women, but women and their unborn children, husbands, and all. That's "caring," not "killing." BIG DIFFERENCE.
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Posted by: -
May. 09, 2016 5:29 PM ET USA
I agree with another commentator on this issue; the church can never change its teaching and never will change. The ACLU is totally "wrong" on this issue. Catholic Hospitals need to speak out and defend the truth.
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Posted by: Randal Mandock -
May. 09, 2016 2:53 PM ET USA
Moral courage alone will not be enough. It was certainly not enough to keep our Catholic hospital open in Atlanta. I don't like to predict civil disobedience, but if Alinsky II takes office in January we may need to protect doctors in our hospitals any way we can.
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Posted by: nix898049 -
May. 09, 2016 11:09 AM ET USA
The Church will not change its position on these matters. Pray for doctors to have moral courage. They are on the frontline of the war against this monstrous development.
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Posted by: loumiamo -
May. 09, 2016 9:13 AM ET USA
The ACLU calls it "health care" when they murder babies and sick and old folks. They learned to spin words like that from their Democrat predecessors in the ante bellum South, who liked to call the enslavement of Black Americans "the white man's burden." Who knows how linguistically inventive they will be when they come after the rest of us.
