March 1, 2018
Dear Members,
On behalf of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, (USCCB) we are soliciting specific examples from CMA members whose conscience rights have been or are being violated.
These instances will be submitted by the USCCB to new Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Conscience Protection recently instituted by the Trump Administration. The new policy is designed to protect and strengthen conscience rights protections for health care professionals nationwide.
The USCCB is particularly interested in specific areas of conflict(s) (e.g., abortion, euthanasia, transgender, same-sex mandates, fetal stem cell use) and the intentional targeting of both CMA members and non-members who have contacted our office seeking counsel and or advice.
The USCCB is also interested in how these conscience rights protections or the lack of enforcement of such protections impact your medical practices, careers and what the experiences both pro and con have on you and your patients.
Unfortunately, there is a tight deadline. The USCCB requires comments by March 8, 2018. Please forward your submissions to CMA Director of Membership, Elizabeth Gill gill@cathmed.org.
Thank you in advance for your time and consideration.
Sincerely,
Marie T. Hilliard, J.C.L., Ph.D., R.N.
Greg F. Burke, M.D.
Ethics Committee Co-Chairs