On Mon, 3/16/09, Christie Myers <<mailto:[email protected]>[email protected]> wrote: Subject: FW: The President of the Association for Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists THE FRONTAL ASSAULT ON OUR CONSCIENCE RIGHTS HAS BEGUN. Date: Monday, March 16, 2009, 1:44 PM
Dear Friends and Family, The Obama Administration is taking comments on the elimination of the right of conscience for health care providers. This right of conscience, which is built into laws the Administration desires to overturn, allows pro-life professionals to practice medicine without performing or referring abortions and other morally repugnant procedures. For more information and to voice your support of the right of conscience see the email below from Dr. Donna J. Harrison. Please forward this email! Thank you, Christie ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- March 13, 2009 Dear Colleagues: This is probably the most crucial letter we have written to you. THE FRONTAL ASSAULT ON OUR CONSCIENCE RIGHTS HAS BEGUN. On Tuesday, March 10, the Obama Administration officially began the process of rescinding the HHS Regulations written specifically to protect your right as a health care provider to not be forced to perform or refer for abortions. These HHS regulations were written in part because of the urgent need for prolife obgyns to be protected from the pro-abortion activism of the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology, as expressed in Ethics Statement # 385. The HHS Regulations are a summary of several statutes which Congress passed over the past three decades‹the Church amendments, the Hoekstra-Coates law, and most recently the Hyde-Weldon law passed in 2004. These statutes were designed to protect provider conscience rights. The HHS regulation simply clarifies the existing laws, which declare that American tax dollars will not fund programs in which healthcare professionals are fired, penalized or otherwise subjected to discrimination because of their ethical stance related to performing or referring for abortion, and other morally controversial issues. Abortion advocates are misrepresenting the HHS Regulations as threatening the lives of women who will die because they can't get emergency abortions, and arguing that women won't be able to get contraception. These are absurd arguments, and have nothing to do with the actual statues cited, or with the wording of the HHS Regulations. Planned Parenthood and other abortion advocates are also arguing that if doctors and other health care professionals are not forced to perform or refer for abortions, access to health care services for women will be restricted. In reality, many health care providers will leave the industry altogether if forced to violate their moral convictions, thereby reducing access to health care services across the board. In addition, without the conscience protection regulation, providers opposed to participating in abortion remain susceptible to intolerance and coercion from employers with conflicting beliefs, and to possible lawsuits from outside organizations. Last week, the Office of Management and Budget announced they were reviewing a proposal to repeal the rule. Starting Tuesday, March 10, the American people have 30 days to voice their opinions on the matter. IF YOU HAVE NEVER WRITTEN AN EMAIL IN YOUR LIFE, NOW IS THE TIME TO DO IT!! We are asking any healthcare professional or lay person to comment. We have made it very easy for you. See below: Go to <http://www.freedom2care.org/>www.freedom2care.org (http://www.freedom2care.org/) . This is a centralized website sponsored by many different organizations (of which AAPLOG is one) who have joined together to battle the attack on our Rights of Conscience. Click on "My Message as a Healthcare Professional." (or "My Message as a Patient" if you are a patient) The letter is written for you. (or you can write your own in the empty box at the bottom of the page.) Next, fill in the contact information that is requested Next, skip the "comment box" unless you want to write your own letter. Next, enter the characters asked for in the small box at right. Next, hit "submit." You are finished. Thank you for doing this! It is very important that you respond. This may be your last chance to save your right to refuse to be involved in abortions. Please pass this email on to your colleagues. Without a huge response from concerned health care professionals over the next 30 days, your legal right to refuse to be involved with abortions may soon disappear. Sincerely, Donna J. Harrison, M.D. President, American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists <http://www.aaplog.org/>www.aaplog.org <http://www.aaplog.org/> -- James H. Dobbins, Ph.D., Esq. <mailto:[email protected]>[email protected] Fax: 540-752-1472 <http://yorked.podomatic.com/>http://yorked.podomatic.com/ Author of Take My Hand: A personal retreat companion. "The Father uttered one Word; that Word is his Son, and he utters him for ever in everlasting silence; and in silence the soul has to hear it." John of the Cross --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ Please note that I do not send or open attachments sent to this list. You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Catholics on Fire" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/Catholics-on-Fire May the blessing of Jesus and our Blessed Mother be with you -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
