The ACLU of Illinois is frequently contacted by patients and health care providers throughout the state who have been affected by religious refusals to provide health care. Some of these individuals have bravely spoken out publicly about their experiences in order to help prevent future harm to others. You can hear directly from them here:
- Read Melanie Jones’ recent blog post, discussing her experience of being refused care at a Catholic hospital in Chicago after she fell and her IUD became dislodged;
- Listen to Mindy Swank explain how she felt when she was denied proper treatment for a miscarriage at a Catholic hospital – an experience that placed her life and health at unnecessary risk;
- Listen to Angela Valavanis talk about how she felt betrayed by her doctor when she did not learn until she had been in labor for three full days and was being wheeled in for her c-section that she could not receive a planned tubal ligation;
- Read stories from many other patients and health care providers in Illinois and throughout the country who have been affected by denials of care at institutions that impose religious restrictions; and
- Hear from Debra Stulberg, a doctor and professor at the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine, who has conducted research on the ethical conflicts that confront healthcare providers working in religious institutions.