Anti-abortion lawmakers and pro-life medical professionals gathered on Capitol Hill last Wednesday in support of an end-of-year spending bill which would protect health care professionals who object to taking part in abortions.
The Conscience Protection Act of 2017 would allow doctors, nurses, healthcare providers and institutions to sue in circumstances where they’re coerced into performing abortions, partaking in such or discriminated against for refusing to do so.
While the current law protects against discrimination, it does not allow for legal action in cases where that law may have been broken.
A press conference following Wednesday’s bill proposal, featured Cathy DeCarlo, a New York City-based nurse who claims despite her religious objections, she was forced in 2009 to assist a doctor in performing an abortion.