January-March, 2004
March
A "Conscience Clause" package has successfully passed the committee
stage in the Michigan House.
HB 5006 would protect any individual health care providers; medical
facilities, like private hospitals, are covered by
HB 5276.
HB 5277 and
HB 5278 would guarantee freedom of conscience for insurance companies.
Passage was assisted by
testimony from Michael O'Dea of Christus Medicus Foundation.
A Wisconsin pharmacist Neil Noesen has been fined $250.00 for refusing, for
reasons of conscience, to fill a prescription for a contraceptive, or to
refer the patient elsewhere. The patient attempted to intimidate him by
calling the police. He has refused to pay the fine, and his case is to be
heard in May. [Police
Used to Intimidate Objecting Pharmacist]
Dr Panos Zavos plans to work from an office in London, England, two days
each month to provide pre-implantation genetic diagnosis to couples who want
to choose the sex of a child. The procedure, illegal in the United Kingdom,
will be performed in the United States. [Sunday Herald, 28 March]
Barbara Howe, a patient at the Massachusetts General Hospital, is suffering
from advanced Lou Gehrig's Disease. She has been on a ventilator since 1999.
She is unable to speak but is not comatose, and is reported to appreciate
visits from her family. Claiming that she was suffering, the hospital sought
a court order to cease assisted nutrition and hydration, against the
patient's previously expressed wishes and contrary to the direction of her
daughter, who is her health care proxy. The court ruled against the
hospital. [Boston
Channel] Some health care workers, ordered to stop food and fluids for
patients who are not dying, may object to the instructions for reasons of
conscience.
The Spanish pro-life group
Provida claims that 96% of gynaecologists
in Spain's public hospitals refuse to perform abortions for reasons of
conscience. According to the report, in 1986, a year after abortion was
legalized in Spain, only 2 out of 100 gynaecologists at La Paz Hospital in
Madrid were willing to perform them. By the end of 2003, in some regions,
such as Valencia, no abortions had been performed for five years. Only one
doctor at the largest hospital in Valencia has performed abortions. Such
widespread opposition within the medical profession to morally controversial
procedures will normally protect conscientious objectors even if no
protection of conscience laws exist. However, a significant shift of opinion
can quickly deprive objectors of this protection, as well as diminishing the
likelihood that protective legislation can be passed.
The northern largely Muslim Nigerian state of Kano has refused to
participate in a World Health Organization polio vaccination programme
because of a report
that the vaccine may render women infertile. State Governor Mallam Ibrahim
Shekarau told the BBC that the state would reconsider the move only if
officials were convinced of the "efficacy and safety" of the vaccine.
A motion favouring assisted suicide was endorsed at the Liberal
Democrat's party conference. Chris Davies, a Liberal Democrat MEP helped to
draft the motion because he perceived widespread public support for a change
in the law. While legalization of assisted suicide is now official party
policy, MPs will be allowed to vote against it in Parliament. [This is Bury,
19 March; The Scotsman, 20 March]
Britain's National Health Service has agreed to pay for the conception
of embryos by in vitro fertilization so that a donor embryo can be
selected and brought to term to provide bone marrow for a sick sibling. [The
Times of London, 21 March]
Pope John Paul II, speaking at an international congress in Rome, has
declared that the provision of food and fluids to persons in a 'vegetative
state' are natural means of preserving life, not medical treatment. The
statement clarifies an important issue for those who adhere to Catholic
teaching, and may be influential beyond the Catholic Church. However, it
contradicts jurisprudence in several jurisdictions, where courts have
supported or ordered the withdrawal of assisted nutrition and hydration on
the grounds that it is medical "treatment". [Papal
statement]
A Christian medical student in his fourth year at the University of Manitoba
has been failed in his obstetrics and gynaecology rotation because of
differences with his preceptors on abortion and related issues. The failing
grade was given in the summer of 2003, but the student has avoided publicity
and has been attempting to resolve the problem through the university's
internal appeal process. His predicament became public this month, after he
lost his third appeal. A local radio station reported the situation,
apparently relying on third-party information. The report included a
statement from Dr. Brian Magwood, Associate Dean at the Faculty of Medicine,
which did not accurately reflect the issues in the case. The news elicited a
sharp warning to the university from lawyer Iain Benson, executive director
of the Centre for Cultural Renewal [See
Eternal Vigilance is the Price of Conscience Protection: The Freedom of
Conscience in Relation to "Health" ].
The station also posted an internet poll question:
"Should a medical
student be allowed to graduate, even though he won't offer abortion as an
option?" Results, posted the
following day, were 54.72% 'Yes', 45.32% 'No.'
The next level of appeal is to the university senate, should other
attempts at resolution prove unsuccessful. Lifesite News has requested
prayers for the student and his family and suggested that messages of
support can be sent to him through
livingfree@mts.net.
The Governor of Wisconsin, who previously described the conscientious
convictions of health care workers as 'whims', plans to veto a protection of
conscience bill passed by the state legislature. [News
release]
During 2003, 91 foreign nationals went to Switzerland to commit suicide
with the assistance of a private group. Swiss authorities now plan to
require six month's residence in the country as a condition for obtaining
assisted suicide. [The Telegraph, 14 March] There will be a requirement that
those assisting with suicide be qualified by having passed tests on various
ways to cause death. The associated costs of police and medical reports are
to be offset by increasing the tax on suicide facilities. [Scotland on
Sunday, 29 February] Normalization of the procedure will naturally increase
the number of people directly or indirectly involved, and increase the
likelihood of conflicts of conscience.
Lesley Martin, a euthanasia advocate, is going to trial for the murder in
the death of her terminally ill mother in 1999. The charges were laid after
she confessed to giving her mother an overdose of morphine and smothering
her. She hopes that the outcome of the trial will generate more support for
legalization of the procedure. A bill to legalize assisted suicide in New
Zealand was defeated by a margin of only two votes. [The Age, 15 March] [Guardian]
A legislative committee studying the handling of complaints within the New
South Wales health care system has been told that health care workers who
attempted to summon emergency medical assistance for patients with
problematic vital signs were obstructed or even assaulted to prevent them
from doing so. The incidents were alleged to have occurred at Campbelltown
and Camden hospitals. One of the witnesses reported six cases of obstruction
by nurses in a ten day period, and that she had been personally prevented
from pressing the call button 20 times in three months. [News
report]
Dr. Haruna Kaita, Dean of the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences of Ahmadu
Bello University in Zaria, Nigeria, found that polio vaccine used by UNICEF
to vaccinate Nigerian children was contaminated. According to Dr. Kaita,
tests conducted at a lab in India, including Gas Chromatography (GC) and
Radio-Immuno assay, detected some toxic ingredients as well as some, like
estrogen, that cause an "anti-fertility response" in humans. The government
now says that contaminated vaccines have been used up and replaced by
uncontaminated batches. In 1995, a UNICEF anti-tetanus program in the
Philippines was halted by a Supreme Court order after Catholic Women's
League showed that the vaccine included B-hCG, which can permanently prevent
women from sustaining a pregnancy. By that time, three million women, aged
12 to 45 had been vaccinated. Health care workers involved in such
programmes who become aware of the contaminants may encounter problems if
they object. [Phillipines
report - Lifesite.net]
Lord Joffe's Assisted Dying for the Terminally Ill Bill, which would
legalise assisted suicide and euthanasia, has been referred to a select
committee for study. [House of Lords Hansard, 10 March;
News
Report]
42 terminally ill patients in Oregon resorted to physician assisted suicide
in 2003, up from 38 in 2002. [The Guardian, 10 March]
Although approved by the Judiciary Committee and supported by the American
Civil Liberties Association, Planned Parenthood and 'right to die' groups, a
bill to legalize assisted suicide in Hawaii has been withdrawn, apparently
because there was concern about attempting to pass the bill in an election
year. Opponents of the bill include The American Cancer Society, American
Centre for Law and Justice of Hawaii, Hawaii Medical Association and the
Catholic Church.
Thomas More Law Center attorney Kim Daniels, appearing on behalf of the
Maryland Catholic Conference, expressed opposition to Senate Bills 247 and
248, which would make morning-after pills available in drugstores without a
doctor's prescription and without any medical supervision. In addition to
medical concerns, Daniels pointed out that the bill's purported conscience
clause would not prevent pharmacists from being forced to dispense the
drugs. The Thomas More Law Center defends and promotes religious freedom of
Christians, time-honored family values, and the sanctity of human life
through education, litigation, and related activities. It does not charge
for its services. It depends on contributions from individuals, corporations
and Foundations. It is recognized by the IRS as a section 501(c)(3)
organization. You may reach the Thomas More Law Center at (734) 827-2001 or
visit our website at www.thomasmore.org.
Senate Bill 439 in West Virginia will deny parents the right to refuse
vaccinations for their children. Religious exemptions will be abolished, and
the law will extend to home schoolers. While some people object to
vaccination for medical reasons, others object, for reasons of conscience,
to the use of vaccines derived from induced abortions.
While the possibility that assisted suicide and euthanasia might be
legalized in some countries raises the prospect of conflicts of conscience
among health care workers, such conflicts can now be foreseen in Poland,
where the governing party has suggested that abortion should be more widely
available. [Alertnet.org, 5 March]
The first Australian baby conceived and selected as a tissue donor will be
born in August. In vitro fertilization and genetic testing were used
to ensure that the child would be a suitable bone marrow donor for a brother
with an incurable genetic disease.
Josiah Onyango, medical officer of the Family Planning Association of
Kenya (FPAK), and Godwin Mzenge, Director of FPAK, have admitted that their
employees may perform abortions (illegal under Kenyan law) and then
misrepresent the procedure in medical records. The disclosures were made to
Norwegian journalists. [Dagen-01;
Dagen-02] This type
of activity can adversely affect conscientious objectors, since they may be
expected to co-operate or at least remain silent when colleagues break the
law.
Professor Eyitayo Lambo, Nigerian Minister of Health, has promised to pursue
aggressive depopulation of the country, in accordance with the wishes of
"key development partners". These include International Planned Parenthood
Federation (IPPF), the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and US Agency
for International Development (USAID). Depopulation in this largely Muslim
country is to be accomplished by abortion and contraception. The agenda,
announced after a 'Reproductive Health and Rights' summit in Abuja, was
criticized by a Dr. Folarin Olowu. He warned against the threat posed to
"unsuspecting Nigerians" by "external forces", and argued that poverty
should be eliminated by transforming the country through progressive
democracy. It was also sternly repudiated in an allAfrica.com editorial by
Sonnie Ekwowusi. [All
Africa] The controversy indicates the probability that the Health
Ministers's plans will generate conflicts of conscience among health care
workers. Such problems have arisen in South Africa. (See the
letters from Dr. Harvey Ward his
survey, as well as a cultural antipathy to the procedure (
No Place for Abortion in African Traditional Life - Some Reflections) .
Legislation that overturned the legalization of euthanasia in
Australia's Northern Territory will be repealed if a bill to be proposed by
the Democrats becomes law. [ABC.net, 3 March]
In a 6-1 ruling, the Supreme Court of California has ruled that Catholic
Charities must supply all 183 employees with insurance coverage for
contraception, despite Catholic teaching that condemns contraception as
gravely sinful. The court ruled that the organization does not deserve a
religious exemption from the law because it employs workers of different
religions, serves people of all backgrounds, and does not directly preach
about Catholic doctrine. The Christian Medical Association is among the
groups that have protested the ruling. [CMA
News release]
February
A 20 year old woman suffering from Parkinson's and the fatal brain
disease leukodystrophy has advised her doctors that she wants to die. Her
mother is considering the possibility of legal action to force her to have a
gastronomy, so that she can receive food and medication by feeding tube. It
is unlikely that such a case would succeed, as current law permits a patient
to commit suicide by refusing food and water. On the other hand, terminally
ill patients who do not want to die may not be able to prevent doctors from
terminating assisted nutrition and hydration. According to Richard Gordon,
QC, who is acting for 44 year old Leslie Burke, the physician's decision can
override the wishes of the patient and family members. Leslie Burke suffers
from a terminal degenerative brain condition called cerebellar ataxia. He
has brought suit against the General Medical Council because its guidelines
permit such decisions by doctors. Alex Schadenberg, Executive Director of
the Euthanasia Prevention Coalition, asserts that euthanasia by withholding
nutrition and hydration has become commonplace, especially in the case of
incompetent patients like Terri Schiavo of Florida. Health care
professionals who object to this kind of procedure may find themselves in
significant moral conflict when an order is made to withdraw assisted
nutrition and hydration from a patient who is not near death from other
causes.
The potential for conflict is illustrated by different reactions to
proposed amendments to the government's draft mental incapacity bill. The
British Medical Association is pleased with the amended version, now to be
called the mental capacity bill, but the Society for the Protection of
Unborn Children, a pro-life group, complains that the amendments make "no
significant changes to the bill's provisions for euthanasia by omission."
A conscience clause bill (AB
67 ) that has been the subject of some controversy even among supporters
of freedom of conscience (see
previous news item) has passed the Wisconsin Senate by a vote of 20 to
13. The bill now goes to the state governor, Jim Doyle, for signature.
Governor Doyle may veto the bill. He has been quoted as saying that health
care should not depend "on the whims of a health care provider." [News
report]
Britain's National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) has recommended
that the National Health Service should offer infertile women between 23 and
29 years old three cycles of in vitro fertilization at public
expense, as well as screening for chlamydia and blocked fallopian tubes. The
estimated annual cost of the proposal is £85 million. A government spokesman
promised that at least one cycle of IVF would be available by April, 2005.
Public funding of morally controversial procedures is likely to lead to an
expectation that health care workers will facilitate such services, leading
to increased pressure on conscientious objectors.
Increasing popularity of artificial reproductive technology is
illustrated by a new website that offers to provide human eggs to infertile
women for a 'subscription fee'. John Gonzalez, who founded the
sperm-for-sale website called "Man Not Included", has now started "Woman Not
Included" to supply human eggs to infertile women. He charges a subscription
fee of £145 to £1,200 for each introduction to a donor, who anonymously
donates her eggs at a fertility clinic. The recipient would then pay for
in vitro fertilization. Donors are also expected to provide
information about their medical and academic history, ethnicity and physical
features.
A committee that is to report next month to the government's advisory and
finance committee has solicited the views of doctors on the island. Other
people are also to be consulted.
A 23 year old woman who was refused the morning-after pill by two
pharmacists has received an apology from Boot's the Chemist pharmacy chain
in the United Kingdom. The incident occurred in Sheffield, south Yorkshire.
Two chemists refused to provide the drug for reasons of conscience, but it
was supplied by another staff member. The woman complained that she was
embarrassed in front of other customers at the store. The company is
reviewing its procedures. Pharmacies in other parts of the world that have
accommodated conscientious objectors have put up signs and used other
methods to accommodate patients. Despite the fact that the pharmacists'
professional body allows for limited freedom of conscience in the UK, the
British Pregnancy Advisory Service criticised the pharmacists and demanded
an investigation. [Sheffield Today, 20 February]
Professor Ian Wilmut, the scientist who cloned Dolly the sheep, has been
quoted as saying that it would be "immoral" not to clone human beings in
order to combat genetic diseases, though he is opposed to cloning for
reproductive purposes generally. The claim that it would sometimes be
immoral to refuse to clone human beings illustrates how quickly a morally
controversial procedure can begin to adversely affect conscientious
objectors.
17 February, 2004
Wisconsin Bill
AB 67 may come to a vote next week. It is supported by Wisconsin Right
to Life (WRL
news release), but not by Wisconsin Pro-lifeand Pharmacists for Life
International (WPL
news release), which prefer
SB 21 and
AB 63 because those bills include protection for pharmacists.
A police investigation into the death of a euthanasia campaigner on the Isle
of Man has concluded that the man died of natural causes, and was too ill to
consume lethal medication brought to him by Dr. Michael Irwin. Irwin
admitted having been involved in the deaths of other patients, and appears
willing to continue the practice as part of a campaign to legalize
euthanasia in the United Kingdom.
Controversy has arisen in North Carolina about a couple who used
Microsort technology to conceive a
girl. Selecting the sex of children has generally been frowned upon, and
those with conscientious objections to the practice may find themselves in
difficulty if they refuse to provide sex-selection service. [News
item]
The Health Professionals Conscientious Objection Campaign has declared a
'victory' because the staff at a major hospital has refused to participate
in abortion. Co-ordinator Philip Rosenthal notes that many smaller hospitals
are refusing to do abortions, especially in rural areas. The activity is not
surprising, since the legalization of abortion in South Africa failed to
take into account the conscientious objections of many health care providers
(See the
letters from Dr. Harvey Ward his
survey, as well as a cultural antipathy to the procedure (
No Place for Abortion in African Traditional Life - Some Reflections) .
Unfortunately, opponents of freedom of conscience in health care will likely
seize upon the Campaign's 'victory' declaration as proof that conscientious
objection is really just a covert method of denying access to abortion. In
the long run, this is likely to develop hostility toward objectors and
invite coercive state intervention.
Eckerd Corporation, a subsidiary of J.C. Penney Company Inc., has fired
three Texas pharmacists who refused to fill a prescription for the
potentially
abortifacient morning after pill. The patient, who had complained of
rape, had the prescription filled at a pharmacy across the street. A
vice-president for Eckerd stated that the company made no exceptions for
"moral, religious or ethical concerns" about prescriptions. 33 year old Gene
Harr of Denton, Texas, said that he was unaware of the company policy when
he declined to fill the prescription for religious reasons. You may express
your concerns about the firing of the objecting pharmacists by contacting:
Wayne Harris
Chairman and CEO of Eckerd
c/o Tami Alderman
Manager, Community Relations
727-395-6380 (Office)
727-395-7934 (Fax)
Allen Questrom
Chairman of the Board and CEO of J.C. Penney.
JC Penney Company, Inc.
6501 Legacy Drive
Plano, TX 75024
(972) 431-1000
A research team in Seoul, South Korea, cloned 30 embryos before extracting a
single stem cell colony. The killing of the embryos to extract the stem
cells adds to the moral controversy attached to the cloning process itself.
A survey of pharmacies in New York has found that one quarter of them do not
carry the morning after pill, and that none of those stores have complied
with a legal requirement to post a sign to that effect. The reason for
non-compliance is either unknown or unreported. Such signs actually minimize
the likelihood of a clash between conscientious objectors and patients.
A statement by Catholic bishops in Honduras illustrates the moral
conflict that can arise for health care workers who are expected by
employers, patients or the state to supply a morally controversial product
or service. Describing the morning-after pill as an
abortifacient, the bishops reminded their people that complicity in
abortion incurs the penalty of excommunication. The statement is likely to
generate some controversy because the application of the term
'abortifacient' is governed differently in moral theology than in science,
even though there may be agreement about the mechanism of action.
According to news reports, a pharmacist who refused to provide the
morning-after pill to a married woman in Stockport was a "devout Christian".
The pharmacist advised the woman where she could go to obtain the pill, but
the patient was nonetheless outraged that the pharmacist had refused to sell
a 'legal product'. The pharmacist has been supported by the company, Asda,
and the Royal Pharmaceutical Society, since she advised the patient of
alternative sources for the drug. Not all conscientious objectors are
willing to refer patients in such cases.
The United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against
Women (CEDAW) is pressuring Ethiopia to decriminalize abortion and to
publicly fund contraceptives [
UN
report]. Abortion is generally rejected in traditional African culture
(See
No Place for Abortion in African Traditional Life - Some Reflections)
and the failure to acknowledge that has led to problems in South Africa.
(See the
letters from Dr. Harvey Ward his
survey of doctors in Cape Town).
Werner Stauffacher, president of the Swiss Academy of Medical Sciences
(SAMS), has said that, while assisted suicide is not part of "normal medical
practice," it is comprehensible in some cases and may be allowed, subject to
strict controls. The desire on the part of the Academy to become involved
with assisted suicide apparently arises from a reluctance to refer patients
to organizations that provide the service, like Dignitas and Exit . [News
item]
Officials of the Kenya Medical Association who made statements favouring
abortion have been criticized by a group of their colleagues led by Dr Jean
Kaggia, who say that they were not consulted on the issue. They compared
legalization of abortion to legalization of murder. have criticised for
supporting legalised abortion. (See
No Place for Abortion in African Traditional Life - Some Reflections).
The failure to acknowledge conscientious objectors has led to problems in
South Africa. (See the
letters from Dr. Harvey Ward his
survey of doctors in Cape Town).
January
Wisconsin
Assembly Bill 67, a protection of conscience measure for health care
professionals and facilities, will come to a vote in a committee of the
state Senate on 29 January. It passed the state Assembly by a wide margin.
A Montreal fertility specialist who changed his mind about performing
artificial insemination for an HIV-positive couple is being sued for
$90,000.00 for discrimination. He reneged on his earlier agreement following
consultation with an ethics committee, which advised him that he and the
clinic would be open to lawsuits from an HIV-positive child. Elsewhere, IVF
and genetic screening has been used to deliberately conceive children who
have defects that are desired by the parents.
Children of God for Life has prepared a Fair Labeling and Informed
Consent Act 2004 (FLICA) for consideration by the U.S. Congress. The bill
would require that all pharmaceutical products - prescription or
non-prescription drugs, vaccines or medical procedures that use fetal or
embryonic cell lines from procured abortion or through IVF methods or human
cloning to be labeled as such. The bill seeks to protect the right of
conscience and religious freedom for anyone who wishes to abstain from using
or dispensing these products in order to allow them to choose ethical
alternatives.
Chiron Corporation is negotiating with Japan about importing and licensing a
new rubella and MMR vaccine that is produced on non-aborted fetal cell
lines. Children of God for Life states that Chiron Corp is the only US
company that provides vaccines not derived from aborted fetal cell lines.
Professor John Harris, a prominent member of the British Medical
Association's ethics committee, has stated that infanticide is justified
when a child has a genetic disorder that remained undetected during
pregnancy. He dismissed the notion that there was any ethical difference
between late term abortion and infanticide, though he would not set an upper
age beyond which infanticide should not be carried out.
The Northern Ireland Family Planning Association is involved in a legal
appeal to establish abortion in Northern Ireland. Opposition to the
procedure is reported to be widespread in the population. The failure to
take such opposition into account when attempting to change laws or policies
governing morally controversial procedures is particularly problematic from
the perspective of conscientious objectors among health care workers.
The Marty Report on Euthanasia will be debated in the Council of Europe
on 29 January, 2004. The report recommends that physicians not be prosecuted
for participation in assisted suicide. The International Federation of
Catholic Medical Associations (FIAMC) has already issued a protest against
the report, expressing concern that physicians will be pressured to act
unethically.
Mrs. Leather, the Chairman of the British Human Fertilisation and Embryology
Authority, has questioned the need for IVF children to have fathers in their
lives. She plans to have the law changed to eliminate a requirement for a
physician to take into account the need of a child for a father, so that
single and lesbian women can avail themselves of the procedure. This may
adversely impact health care providers who are involved in in vitro
fertilization, but whose moral convictions regarding the upbringing of
children differ from Mrs. Leather's.
A new 'Microsort' technology to select IVF embryos by sex is being tested by
the Genetics and IVF Institute (GIVF) in Fairfax, Virginia, USA. The trial
now involves 400 couples. Dye is used to mark sperm carrying more DNA, where
are then sorted using a laser. The technique is one of numerous procedures
collectively identified as preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD), used in
eugenic testing of IVF embryos. PGD is being used to identify embryos with
genetic illnesses or defects in order to eliminate them. Microsort, if
successful, will make it possible to choose the sex of a child. The
production of IVF embryos for reproductive purposes usually involves the
production of 'surplus' embryos, which, depending upon the law and the
wishes of the parents, may be frozen, passed on to surrogates or adoptive
mothers, used for research and/or ultimately killed. [Newsweek]
At a press conference in London, England, Dr. Panos Zavos of the Andrology
Institute of America in Louisville, Kentucky claimed that he had implanted a
cloned embryo in a woman. However, he refused to say where this had taken
place, and had no evidence to support his assertions. He also discussed
plans to divide an in vitro embryo into identical twins, with a view
to bringing one to birth and freezing the other for spare body parts.
Adverse reaction from the British government to the announcements was itself
criticized by the Catholic Church in Scotland, on the grounds that such
experimentation is quite legal on cloned human embryos less than 14 days
old. Zavos' statements demonstrate that artificial reproductive technologies
involve procedures to which many would object for reasons of conscience.
A private member's bill drafted by Lord Joffe that would legalize assisted
suicide will be investigated by a committee appointed by the House of Lords.
While Lord Joffe claims that 80% of Britons support euthanasia and assisted
suicide, opponents cite a survey that showed 74% of physicians would refuse
to assist with suicide, and 56% believed that euthanasia could not be safely
controlled. The April, 2003 survey also found that none of the palliative
care specialists who responded agreed with euthanasia or assisted suicide.
Legalization of the procedure without protection of conscience measures
would have a serious adverse impact on most members of the medical
profession.
The 'morning after pill' became legally available over the counter in
Australia on 1 January. A number of pharmacists refuse to dispense the drug
because it may sometimes have abortifacient effects. Others are refusing to
dispense it for medical reasons. A representative of the pharmacists' guild
complained that they had not had time to reflect on the ethical issues
involved, but the government claims that they not only had months to think
about it, but helped to develop guidelines for the practice.