Alabama
Senate Bill 105 (2012)
Health Care Rights of Conscience Act
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF ALABAMA:
Section 1.
This act may be known and cited as the Health
Care Rights of Conscience Act.
Section 2.
The Legislature finds and declares:
(1) It is the public policy of the State of
Alabama to respect and protect the fundamental right
of conscience of individuals who provide health care
services.
(2) Without comprehensive protection, health care
rights of conscience may be violated in various
ways, such as harassment, demotion, salary
reduction, termination, loss of privileges, denial
of aid or benefits, and refusal to license, or
refusal to certify.
(3) It is the purpose of this act to protect
religious or ethical rights of all health care
providers to decline to counsel, advise, provide,
perform, assist, or participate in providing or
performing certain health care services that violate
their consciences, where they have made their
objections known in writing.
(4) It is the purpose of this act to prohibit
discrimination, disqualification, or coercion upon
such health care providers who decline to perform
any health care service that violates their
conscience and who object in writing prior to being
asked to perform such health care services.
Section 3.
The following words and terms shall have the
meanings ascribed to them in this section, unless
otherwise required by their respective context:
(1) CONSCIENCE. The religious,
moral, or ethical principles held by a health care
provider.
(2) DISCRIMINATION.
Discrimination includes, but is not limited to:
Hiring, termination, refusal of staff privileges,
refusal of board certification, demotion, loss of
career specialty, reduction of wages or benefits,
adverse treatment in the terms and conditions of
employment, refusal to award any grant, contract, or
other program, or refusal to provide residency
training opportunities.
(3) HEALTH CARE PROVIDER. Any
individual who may be asked to participate in any
way in a health care service, including, but not
limited to: A physician, physician's assistant,
nurse, nurse's aide, medical assistant, hospital
employee, clinic employee, nursing home employee,
pharmacist, researcher, medical or nursing school
faculty, student, or employee, counselor, social
worker, or any professional, paraprofessional, or
any other person who furnishes or assists in the
furnishing of health care services.
(4) HEALTH CARE SERVICE. Any
phase of patient medical care, treatment or
procedure, related to: Patient referrals,
counseling, therapy, testing, diagnosis or
prognosis, research, instruction, prescribing,
dispensing or administering any device, drug, or
medication, surgery, or any other care or treatment
rendered or provided by health care providers for
abortion, human cloning, human embroyonic stem cell
research, and sterilization. Health care service
does not include notifying a member of a health care
institution's management of a patient inquiry about
obtaining a health care service that a health care
provider believes may violate his or her conscience.
(5) OBJECT IN WRITING. To
provide advance notice in a signed written document
to an authorized agent of his or her employer,
board, or other oversight agency of a particular
health care provider.
(6) PARTICIPATE. To counsel,
advise, provide, perform, assist in, refer for,
admit for purposes of providing, or participate in
providing, any health care service or any form of
such service. Participate does not include
compliance with a health care institution's policy
and procedure which states that a health care
provider must notify a member of the health care
institution's management of a patient's inquiry
about obtaining a health care service that the
health care provider believes may violate his or her
conscience.
Section 4.
(a) A health care provider has the right not to
participate, and no health care provider shall be
required to participate, in a health care service
that violates his or her conscience when the health
care provider has objected in writing prior to being
asked to provide such health care services.
(b) No health care provider shall be civilly,
criminally, or administratively liable for declining
to participate in a health care service that
violates his or her conscience except when failure
to do would immediately endanger the life of a
patient.
(c) No limitation of liability or exception in
this act shall apply when any health care provider
declines to participate in any health care service
if the denial of the health care service will result
in or hasten the death of the patient on the basis
that extending the life of an elderly, disabled, or
terminally ill patient is of less value than
extending the life of a patient who is younger, not
disabled, or not terminally ill.
(d) It shall be unlawful for any person, health
care provider, health care institution, public or
private institution, public official, or any board
which certifies competency in medical specialties to
discriminate against any health care provider in any
manner based on his or her declining to participate
in a health care service that violates his or her
conscience, where the health care provider has made
his or her objections known in writing.
Section 5.
(a) An action for injunctive relief may be
brought for the violation of any provision of this
act. It shall not be a defense to any claim arising
out of the violation of this act that such violation
was necessary to prevent additional burden or
expense on any other health care provider or health
care institution.
(b) The court in such action may award injunctive
relief, including ordering reinstatement of a health
care provider to his or her prior job position, back
pay and costs of the action.
Section 6.
(a) The provisions of this act shall not apply to
health care institutions or employers who are
licensed by the State of Board of Health as abortion
clinics. Further, nothing in this act shall modify,
amend, repeal, or supersede any provision of Section
6-5-333 of the Code of Alabama 1975, or any judicial
interpretation thereof.
(b) This act shall not apply to a licensed
professional counselor licensed by the Board of
Examiners in Counseling, or an associate licensed
counselor or a counselor in training, or a school
counselor certified by the State Board of Education,
providing counseling is in accordance with the codes
of ethics of the respective licensing or certifying
entity and the standards of care reflected in the
appropriate codes of ethics.
Section 7.
If any part of this act or the application
thereof to any person or circumstances is held
invalid, such invalidity shall not affect parts or
applications of this act which can be given effect
without the invalid part or application and to this
end, such invalid portions of this act are declared
severable.
Section 8.
This act shall become effective on the first day
of the third month following its passage and
approval by the Governor, or its otherwise becoming
law.