The last sentence of Section 5 of Kentucky’s Constitution states, “No human authority shall, in any case whatever, control or interfere with the rights of conscience.” This provision, enacted in 1891 and never amended, guarantees the right of conscience in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, exceeding the protections of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
Unfortunately, Kentucky’s healthcare professionals, particularly acting Christians, have not benefited from these constitutional protections. One in three Christian medical students and one in five Christian healthcare professionals have reported discrimination in the classroom/workplace environment. This has impacted Kentucky’s ability to attract healthcare professionals, since 91% of religious professionals have stated they would rather stop practicing medicine than violate their ethical, moral, or religious beliefs.
Kentucky was the location of a high-profile example of the weak state of conscience protections. In 2019, the University of Louisville fired Dr. Allan Josephson for speaking at a Heritage Foundation event on the dangers of “transitioning” kids. Thankfully, he won a major victory in court last year, resulting in a $1.6 million payout.
While we are thankful for this major victory and for our friends at Alliance Defending Freedom for taking this case, it is a clear example of why we need comprehensive medical conscience protections in state law. Had the protections been in law, UofL likely would have thought twice about their actions, which would have saved taxpayers a lot of money.
Last session, the General Assembly fell just short of passing conscience protections when House leadership refused to call a vote on the bill in the last days of session. However, the General Assembly has no excuse not to pass a bill this session with it being a long 60-day session. SB 72 by Sen. Donald Douglas (pictured) would finally address this issue, ensuring that no healthcare professional in Kentucky faces discrimination for living out his ethical, moral, and/or religious beliefs. Please ask your Representative and Senator to finally protect medical conscience rights by supporting SB 72
Senate Bill 72 TALKING POINTS
- The Kentucky Constitution guarantees the right to conscience.
- A person’s career should never be threatened for living out his deeply held beliefs.
- Stop discriminating against Christians in the medical field.
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let your KY legislators know that you support SB 72!
Click here to view and download the PDF of the print version of the Citizen paper.