Health Care Denied

Patients and Physicians Speak Out About Catholic Hospitals and the Threat to Women’s Health and Lives

Reports from the ACLU and MergerWatch reveal that one in six hospital beds in the U.S. is in a facility that complies with Catholic directives that prohibit a range of reproductive health care services, even when a woman’s life or health is in jeopardy. In some states, more than 40 percent of all hospital beds are in a Catholic-run facility, leaving entire regions without any option for certain reproductive health care services. The ACLU’s report shares firsthand accounts from patients who have been denied appropriate care at Catholic hospitals, from health care providers forbidden from providing critical care because of the Directives, and from physicians at secular hospitals who have treated very sick women after they were turned away from a Catholic facility.

The Ethical and Religious Directives for Catholic Health Care Services, which are promulgated by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, set forth standards for the provision of care at Catholic health care facilities. The Directives prohibit a range of reproductive health services, including contraception, sterilization, many infertility treatments, and abortion, even when a woman’s life or health is jeopardized by a pregnancy. Because of these rules, many Catholic hospitals across this country are withholding emergency care from patients who are in the midst of a miscarriage or experiencing other pregnancy complications. Catholic hospitals also routinely prohibit doctors from performing tubal ligations (commonly known as “getting your tubes tied”) at the time of delivery, when the procedure is safest, leaving patients to undergo an additional surgery elsewhere after recovering from childbirth. Catholic hospitals deny these essential health services despite receiving billions in taxpayer dollars. Transgender and gender-non-conforming patients suffer the same and other, similar harms when seeking reproductive health care.

Read more and download the report.

 
Media Coverage:

• Washington Post: 1 in 6 hospital beds in U.S. is in a Catholic institution, restricting reproductive care
• The Guardian: Hundreds of US hospitals Follow Catholic Rules on Reproductive Care
• Reuters: Watchdog finds much larger Catholic influence on U.S. hospitals
• Chicago Tribune: Reproductive care in U.S. restricted by large number of Catholic hospitals
• New York Magazine: There Are Nearly 550 Catholic Hospitals That Can Deny Women Emergency Reproductive Care
• Huffington Post: Womens’ Health and Equality: Why We Supported Cecile Richards Speaking At a Catholic University
• Kaiser Health News: As Catholic Hospital Systems Grow, Advocates Worry About Faith-Based Prohibitions On Reproductive Care
• Becker’s Hospital Review: 6 Findings on the Growth of Catholic Hospitals and Health Systems
• Seattle Weekly: Catholic Hospitals Still Hurt Women's Health
• Michigan Radio: 1 in 4 Michigan Hospital Beds Are in Catholic Hospitals
• Arkansas Matters: Criticism for Catholic Hospital Practices
• Wisconsin Gazette: 1 in 6 beds in facilities that prohibit range of reproductive health care
• Eclecta Blog: New report shows continued growth of Catholic health systems that refuse to provide essential care
• Common Dreams: New Report Reveals 1 in 6 U.S. Hospital Beds Are in Catholic Facilities That Prohibit Essential Health Care for Women
• Fierce Health Care: Number of Catholic hospitals in US has grown 22% since 2001
• Grand Forks Herald: Watchdog finds much larger Catholic influence on U.S. hospitals