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Conscience Protection Act of 2021
12/30/2022, 8:18 AM
Summary of Bill HR 6060
The bill aims to prevent discrimination against healthcare providers who refuse to participate in or provide services that go against their conscience. It prohibits the government from taking any adverse action against healthcare providers who choose not to participate in such procedures.
Additionally, the Conscience Protection Act of 2021 includes provisions that allow healthcare providers to file complaints with the Department of Health and Human Services if they believe their rights have been violated. The bill also requires the Department of Health and Human Services to investigate these complaints and take appropriate action if necessary. Overall, the Conscience Protection Act of 2021 seeks to ensure that healthcare providers are able to practice medicine in accordance with their moral or religious beliefs without fear of retribution. It is currently being debated in Congress and has garnered support from various religious and pro-life organizations.
Congressional Summary of HR 6060
Conscience Protection Act of 2021
This bill provides statutory authority for certain protections for health care providers that refuse to participate in abortions based on religious beliefs or other convictions. Health care providers include individual professionals, medical facilities, health insurance organizations, and social services providers that refer clients to health care services.
The federal government and entities that receive federal funding for health-related activities, including state and local governments, may not discriminate against a health care provider that refuses to be involved in, or provide coverage for, abortions. Currently, similar requirements apply to various related activities, including
- certain employment or personnel decisions (the Church Amendments),
- abortion services training (the Coats-Snowe Amendment),
- qualified health plans offered through health insurance exchanges, and
- annual appropriations bills for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and other federal agencies (the Weldon Amendment).
The HHS Office for Civil Rights must investigate complaints of this kind of discrimination. Furthermore, HHS may terminate or reduce HHS funding for health-related activities if a person or entity fails to comply with nondiscrimination requirements.
Additionally, the Department of Justice or any entity adversely affected by such discrimination may bring a civil action to obtain appropriate relief. A plaintiff does not need to seek or exhaust administrative remedies before bringing the action. A plaintiff may also bring an action, including one for money damages, against a governmental entity. In many cases, principles of sovereign immunity shield states and some localities from these kinds of actions.
