AR Lawmakers Will Let Christian Healthcare Workers Deny Services to LGBTQ People

[NeoGreen]

https://friendlyatheist.patheos.com/2021/03/19/ar-lawmakers-will-let-christian-healthcare-workers-deny-services-to-lgbtq-people/

AR Lawmakers Will Let Christian Healthcare Workers Deny Services to LGBTQ People
By Hemant Mehta, March 19, 2021

Yesterday, the Republican-run Arkansas Senate passed a bill, SB 289, that would allow all healthcare workers to deny service to people if providing it violates their “conscience.” The bill previously passed in the State House, so this only awaits the signature of Governor Asa Hutchinson.

They may as well ban the Hippocratic Oath since “Do No Harm” no longer applies in Arkansas.

If Hutchinson signs this bill, Christian healthcare workers will be allowed to refuse to care for LGBTQ patients if helping them would violate their religious beliefs. Christian pharmacists could refuse to dispense birth control for the same reason.

American Atheists calls this the “most extreme denial of healthcare bill in the country.”

“No one in the middle of a medical emergency should have to find out that a hospital will deny them care until it’s too late. Simply put, this bill prioritizes the religious beliefs of hospital administrators and employers over the lives of patients,” said Alison Gill, Vice President for Legal and Policy at American Atheists. “A person’s boss or insurance company should not be able to use personal religious beliefs to dictate the healthcare their families can or cannot receive.”

It’s not like this is a real problem anyway. According to AA, only 10 faith-based complaints were filed with the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights between 2008 and 2016. That’s across the country. But Republicans in Arkansas aren’t interested in helping everyone; they’re only interested in appeasing the Christian Right.

And people wonder why christianity/catholicism are mentioned more often than not when religion is being criticized.

Maybe this is what prompted Atticus's post:
https://www.democraticunderground.com/100215256584

[LastDemocratInSC]

1. Will they allow Muslim health care workers to deny care to Christians?

That's a hypothetical question, of course, because I doubt a Muslim would want to do that. But I suspect the legislators would react angrily to the idea and say "no way".

[mountain grammy]

2. Jesus? Lepers? Christian Right?

[Ferrets are Cool]

4. Jesus wept

[Voltaire2]

5. atheist health care workers won't deny service to anyone

because in general, they are not bigoted assholes.

[Warpy]

6. "Christian" universities are pumping out pharmacists, RNs, pre med students

all of whom are educated enough to pass the boards but ready to do battle for Jebus against sinners, something he'd never have approved of in the least, but they don't read all those sissy parts of the bible that quote him directly.

I've known a few of them. They've all been deadly.