Free Republic

A Catholic health system in Oklahoma has threatened to sue the federal government for violating its First Amendment rights over a decision to deny re-accreditation to one of its hospitals if it doesn’t follow an order to extinguish a long-lit sanctuary candle for safety purposes. Following a hospital inspection in February, a federal surveyor deemed that a living flame in the Saint Francis Hospital South chapel – part of the Saint Francis Health System – violated code, as it is “an open flame burning unattended 24/7.” The surveyor issued a citation demanding the candle be extinguished. Saint Francis Health Systems...

A new Washington Post article criticized Catholic hospitals this week for providing health care to all Americans including unborn babies, prompting one prominent abortion activist to demand that they shut down. Jill Filipovic, a writer and abortion activist, said Catholic hospitals should “not be in business” or receive tax dollars to serve Medicaid and other low-income patients if they refuse to do abortions. “The religious affiliation of a hospital should not dictate healthcare. If Catholic hospitals refuse to offer a basic standard of reproductive care, they should not be in business — and certainly shouldn’t be getting government resources or...

Plans by three Catholic hospital systems in Wisconsin to deny admitting privileges to doctors who perform abortions would "be in active violation of federal law," Attorney General J. B. Van Hollen's Department of Justice said in a court filing last week. Federal law "provides that hospitals accepting federal funds may not discriminate against a physician because that physician has participated in or refused to participate in abortions," the state Justice Department said in its filing in federal court. According to experts on federal law, if doctors can prove they were not granted privileges specifically because they perform the procedure, the...

At the height of the contentious debate that surrounded health care reform in 2010, negotiations nearly ground to a halt due objections made by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) over abortion funding provisions in the legislation. The USCCB, which is considered quite liberal in the American sense of the word on the issues of health care and health insurance, refused to give its blessing to what would become ObamaCare due to the legislation's funding for elective abortions. At the time, ObamaCare appeared doomed. Many Democrats stated that they could not support a health care bill which didn't...

The baby who was hours from being pulled off life support at his Canadian hospital has been rescued by the national director of Priests for Life and taken to the U.S. for treatment. Thirteen-month-old Joseph Maraachli, who is currently kept alive by a respirator and was recently denied a transfer to a Michigan hospital to undergo a tracheotomy, arrived in the U.S. early Monday morning with Fr. Frank Pavone and other Priests for Life staff. "Priests for Life staff toiled through the night for many nights, working in concert with dozens of people to make this possible," Father Pavone said...

Dear Friends, The following is a story about New Jersey, but I think it's typical of the relationships that many Catholic hospitals and Catholic Charities have with pro-abortion politicians upon whom they seem to depend for funding. I hope you find the information contained in this article helpful in speaking out against bureaucrats working for Catholic institutions who fail to defend Catholic values in your area. I would hate to think that Church officials are not more forceful in speaking up for pre-born children in danger of abortion because of the money they're getting from politicians for Catholic institutions, but...

American Life League Urges Connecticut Bishops to Rethink Plan B at Catholic Hospitals WASHINGTON, October 5, 2007 (LifeSiteNews.com) - "The actions of the Connecticut Catholic Conference are an outrage and a crime," said Judie Brown, president of American Life League (ALL) reacting to the news that the Connecticut Bishops have given permission for the use of the so-called "emergency contraceptive" Plan B for rape victims at Catholic hospitals. "It's bad enough to allow so-called emergency contraception in Catholic hospitals, but to claim that the Church has never officially ruled on such matters is completely untrue," added Brown. The Connecticut Catholic...

Commentary by Rev. Thomas J. Euteneuer, President, Human Life International On September 28th the Connecticut bishops issued an unfortunate statement allowing the Plan B abortion-causing drug to be used in cases of rape in Catholic hospitals. I have written respectfully and urgently to the Connecticut Catholic Conference (CCC) and to each bishop individually to ask them to withdraw this potentially precedent-setting statement, and I pray that they do so. I am extremely concerned that this statement will begin to have a domino effect on other Catholic hospitals and healthcare institutions, and I write to you today to ask your...

U.S. Catholic Health Association Giving Flawed Advice on Morning After Pill to Catholic Hospitals Commentary republished with permission by Matt Bowman of Alliance Defense FundExcerpted from http://www.constitutionallycorrect.com/archive/2007/10/03/553.aspx WASHINGTON, DC, October 3, 2007 (LifeSiteNews.com) - The Connecticut Catholic hospitals' spokesman Barry Feldman, in statements discussing the new policy allowing emergency contraception for rape victims even though embryos might not implant as a result, listed the Catholic Health Association as support for the new policy. The position of the Catholic Health Association on "emergency contraception" is well known and seriously flawed.  It basically presents "emergency contraception" as permissible even after a positive ovulation...

Point Man for Connecticut Bishops on Plan B 'Emergency Contraception' Totally Confused on Issue By John-Henry Westen HARTFORD, October 2, 2007 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Barry Feldman is general counsel for St. Francis Hospital the lead spokesman for the Connecticut Catholic Bishops conference regarding their newly announced permission to administer the morning after pill Plan B to rape victims in Catholic hospitals in the state. In seeking comment on the decision LifeSiteNews.com spoke with the pro-life office of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) but was directed to the executive director of the Connecticut Catholic Conference (CCC). Deacon David Reynold, acting...

SAN FRANCISCO, February 3, 2006 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Despite the fact that so-called "emergency contraception" (EC) can cause early abortions; a new study has found that only 35% of the Catholic hospitals surveyed indicated that EC is not available at the hospital.  The study was conducted in four states in which the law discriminates against those do not wish to participate in abortion by requiring the abortion-causing drugs be made available or suggested in emergency rooms for sexual assault patients.The study was carried out by Ibis Reproductive Health and commissioned by the pro-abortion anti-Catholic group misnamed "Catholics for a Free...