Protections of Medical Conscience Bill & Us
As we are socialized into this world, we both acquire and develop what we label as our identity. What humor brings us to tears, the belief systems we accept and reject, our gender expression, fashion preferences, and diet practices. Yes, we are all human, developed from a zygote to a fetus and then later self-defined. Unfortunately, the same likes and dislikes we are conditioned to as an adolescent, as well as innate and learned biases, linger in our everyday practices. This is where hate, prejudice, and discriminatory practices foster. And given the proper conditions, such feelings are perpetuated. On May 1st, 2023, Governor Ron DeSantis of Florida signed a Medical Conscience Act that would give healthcare providers and workers the right to refuse treatment that would violate their moral, religious, or ethical beliefs. Although granting jurisdiction to preserve and prevent threats to personal morality allows Florida citizens to further practice their first amendment right, doing so violates historically marginalized community members, proliferates a cycle of America’s conditional love, and threatens our current state of democracy.
SB1580, which will be completely implemented in all Florida hospitals and healthcare programs on July 1st, 2023, aims to provide safety and protection to those refusing to offer such services from a place of “conscience-based” care. The momentum for such a bill comes from a desire to create a state renowned for “medical freedom” and cushioning for uncomfortable healthcare interactions. Moreso, such Act seeks to protect workers that may refuse to provide treatment they hold an individual stigma against. This ensures that if a doctor or insurer turns down a practice on the basis of personalized biases - they will not be sued or discriminated against for doing so.
In implementing such bill, Florida is protecting the side of the oppressors and encouraging unjustified bigotry.
Section 1 specifically grants such employees who refuse to serve people a layer of security from any license suspension, lawsuit, discharge or demotion that may have occurred as a result of their failure to provide care.
I understand as a community member and employee in the service industry, everyday interactions may be plagued by people who derive from a place of hate. It is difficult to respect, let alone serve, individuals who insist on harming those around them. With so much obligation and responsibility, doctors are unable to ever say “no.” Take, for instance, the pervading matter of gun violence in American schools, businesses, and neighborhoods. If one is the cause of a mass shooting or tragic loss of our country’s children, would saving them feel ethically correct? If they are wheeled into an operating room with life-threatening injuries, directly after their cruel and murderous acts, how does a surgeon or first responder move forward? Moral principles overcome a person and what is ‘just’ becomes a mental debate. If it moves a person into a damaging state of mind or dismantles a code of ethics they have spent a lifetime in practice, putting another person’s health forward can have damaging consequences for the worker at hand.
But does this counter-argument not contradict the vows sworn to be one of medicinal practice? The Hippocratic Oath as well as the Osteopathic Oath, although not required or legally-binding, are laws of ethics uttered by doctors and equivalent when completing their degree and beginning their practice. The popular mantra of, “do no harm,” is derived from such texts and emphasizes the role these professionals play in helping others in the absence of worsening a condition.
Now I ask, is withholding expertise, resources, and the ability to benefit a person’s state - an act of harm?
We then enter into the argument of what is considered a conscience based withdrawal and what defines the validity of a moral or ethical principle. Section 2b outlines how these affiliations are determined, although leaves a gray area for how an individual might associate themselves with a moral code or belief system.
My concern lies in what beliefs or moral values are treated as the exception to such clause and how an institution can begin to measure an ethical code that is so individualized. If a medical practitioner or insurer is actively involved with an organization whose previously noted “mission statement” or “constitution” revolves around the degradation of other groups, parties, or policies, how is such following deemed morally justified? This could potentially amplify the role such individuals play in heavily polarized groups, and mobilize others to solidify a platform for their own prejudice. Further, the wording and presentation of the bill is vague enough to be utilized as a defense for an individual’s misguided beliefs and implicit biases. Such evocations pose a significant threat to, religiously diverse, BIPOC, and LGBTQIA+ communities across the state of Florida.
Who is affected?
Instead of serving increasingly intersectional communities with a basis of healthcare, inequality and discriminatory beliefs are given a substantial space to grow and regenerate. Reproductive freedom has materialized as one of our country’s largest political and social debates, and is only intensified with the PMC Bill. In April, Governor DeSantis evoked one of the most extreme abortion-ban laws, in which such procedures can not be performed only 6 weeks of conception. The Human Rights Watch underlines how this bill also allocates $25 million of state funding to fake clinics that use misinformation and shame to try to dissuade pregnant people from getting abortions. Such repressive policies are only aggravated by this Act of Medical Conscience, in which doctors or insurers can refuse to serve those regardless of prescription, accommodations, or a timeline. Such care also inhibits historically marginalized community members from accessing and achieving support for STDs and fertility reversal surgeries. This displaces and disproportionately impacts women and people of color, as refusal to treat such ailments can be justified by an “ethical” criterion. Further, the PMC Act significantly reduces transgender youth and adults from receiving the treatment they require to live as the individual they psychologically embody, significantly closing off access to gender-affirming surgeries. The bill reiterates a guideline of moral and religious upholding, omitting trans and LGBTQIA+ individuals from the interpreted scriptures of religious texts and right-side organizations. This is a giant step back for the entirety of the trans community and is a threat to the gender and sexual diversity in our country. The bill further restricts access to condoms, HIV/AIDS prevention services, and could reinforce discrimination against sex-trafficking victims. Another crucial cornerstone that the PMC Bill threatens, is physician-assisted suicide, or, euthanasia. This is a process that occurs usually when a patient has been battling a terminal illness in which their quality of life has simply diminished amidst all treatment plans. Popular application occurs by withdrawing life-sustaining treatment or a drug protocol that slowly stops the immune system and other important bodily functions. There is usually significant criteria a patient and their illness must fulfill in order for them to request such a process. The patient and family can make a decision to end their life in a safe and healthy environment, in an attempt to alleviate ongoing and future pain - emotionally and physically. The Medical Conscience Bill now dictates a space for such doctors to refuse a request for euthanasia based upon moral contradiction. Although euthanasia has been considered a controversial medical process over the past decade, this could bear damaging effects on people that are in poor situations and seeking an alleviated and righteous way out of terminal discomforts.
Resources for Us
Explicit discrimination in a healthcare setting may become more intrinsic as this Act is officially put into place. But that does not mean our ability to receive the protection we need is completely taken away, most specifically in the region of Florida.
Reproductive Hotlines and Services
Tampa Bay Abortion Fund - This organization assists in finding and funding assistance for cost and travel to safe reproductive clinics, whether it be around the Tampa area or out of state, they dedicate their resources to providing a place for safe abortion practices with medical experts.
If/When/How -This helpline is run by groups of attorneys who fight for reproductive freedom both within and outside of Florida. In contacting them, you receive information on abortion rights in attempts to defend those criminalized or charged for self-managed abortion.
INeedanA - This website offers a confidential space to look for safe and legal abortion locations near you in accordance with your zip code and state legislative reproductive conditions.
Planned Parenthood of South, East, and Northern Florida - This website and corporation provides easy access to local clinic information, resources for attaining an out-of-state abortion after 6 weeks, reproductive and fertility testing, and more.
Florida HIV / AIDS Hotline - This center provides detailed information on being tested for, diagnosed, and treated with HIV/AIDS in one’s current location.
Women’s Reproductive Rights Assistance Project - WRRAP is a non-profit dedicated to financially supporting women and families in affording, finding, and recovering from abortions and similar reproductive procedures.
Transgender Care - Medical and Non-Medical Options
National Center for Transgender Equality - A community of individuals sharing their experience with transitioning, coming out, and navigating life amidst their gender journey. They also host a variety of events and fundraisers that are geared towards lifting up the national transgender community, as well as fighting for justice in the healthcare system and beyond.
Transgender Law Center - This space provides resources for trans-policy advocacy and legal advice for human rights and gender violations.
Trans Youth Equality Federation - This non-profit strives to provide education and services to trans youth and families that are beginning their transitioning process, as well as fostering an environment of welcomeness and support for the community.
Gender Affirmation nonsurgical options:
Laser Hair Removal
Hormone Replacement Therapy
Voice Care/Speech Therapy
Behavioral Care and Counseling
Sexual Abuse Resources
National Sexual Assault Hotline - A space to confidentially share one’s current circumstances, receive information about local treatments or medical screening services, information about local sexual abuse laws, and more.
National Domestic Abuse Hotline - An interpersonal resource for getting out of abusive situations, receiving the proper medical and reproductive treatment, as well as resources for youth to utilize in taking care of themselves.
What is a Forensic Examination? - This is a helpful article on what it looks like to partake in a forensic examination following sexual violence, the contents of the kit and projected outcomes, as well as resources for safely receiving such a procedure in a local area.
Doctors and health care providers have a right to their moral and religious beliefs. Patients have a right to unconditional and safely provided medical care. How do we move forward in preservation of all rights?
