The HHS Rule Change
Since August, women’s health and civil rights advocates have been carefully following an HHS proposal that supposedly would increase conscience protections for health care workers. On the surface, the rule seemed like an attempt to level the playing field and prevent discrimination of those opposed to providing abortion services. In reality, the rule drastically expands the ability of health care workers to put their moral beliefs above a patient’s right to the best health care and informed consent and cripples an employer’s ability to discipline a worker for failure to perform expected job duties.
Advocates also note that the ambiguity in this rule would allow health care providers at sectarian medical facilities to practice their moral beliefs by providing services – such as sterilization – despite their employer’s policies. Proponents of this rule dismiss this concern as “not being the intent of the rule.” Despite more than 100,000 comments from the public telling Sec. Leavitt not to implement this rule, he did so yesterday afternoon.
Today Lon Newman joined us to share his views on this regulation. Mr. Newman is the Executive Director of Family Planning Health Services in Wausau, WI. His agency provides family planning and WIC services in Central Wisconsin. Mr. Newman is also the President of the Wisconsin Family Planning and Reproductive Health Association, a network of publicly-funded family planning and reproductive health care providers.
