The End of Catholic Hospitals?

Over at Hot Air Ed Morrissey wonders about the long term impact of the "Freedom of Choice Act." This is a bill wandering around Congress, which President Elect Obama has promised to sign the moment it hits his desk. Sponsored by Senator Barbara Boxer (D, Califoria), it would eliminate, nation-wide, all restrictions on abortion "up to the time of fetal viability."

Ed Morrissey, who used to blog under the handle Captain's Corner, further links to the National Review Online and Kathryn Jean Lopez, who notes that the US Catholic Bishops have promised to shut down their hospitals rather than submit to a requirement to perform abortions. The foundational article in this chain is at Slate, where Melinda Henneberger talks about the issue.

A shutdown of Catholic Hospitals could have at least a short term impact on the provision of health care in the United States, particularly in areas not served by a commercial hospital.

Unintended consequences can be a problem when making policy decisions. As I recall from my French Revolution course a couple of semesters ago at UMass Lowell, the Professor noted that the decision of the Revolutionary Government in France to abolish religious orders didn't take into consideration that the motivation of women religious to nurse the sick did not easily and quickly transfer from doing it for the love of God to doing it for the love of the Tricolor and the motto liberty,equality, fraternity. The result was a major failure of health care in France in the last decade of the 18th Century.

If the bill was to be pass, signed and fully enforced there would, of course, be arguments that the US Catholic Bishops were throwing the baby out with the bathwater if they were to close hospitals over having to perform abortions, but if one is going to eventually draw a line, that might be the best place. Let us hope and pray it does not come to that. Being a pluralistic society means accommodating a lot of different views, including those of Catholics.

And, all due credit to The Anchoress for initially pointing me to this thread.

Regards -- Cliff