CSSB 348(JUD): "An Act relating to certain rights of conscience protection for persons who directly or indirectly provide or perform health services."
00CS FOR SENATE BILL NO. 348(JUD) 01 "An Act relating to certain rights of conscience protection for persons who 02 directly or indirectly provide or perform health services." 03 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 04 * Section 1. AS 18 is amended by adding a new chapter to read: 05 Chapter 17. Rights of Conscience Protection. 06 Sec. 18.17.010. Policy. It is the public policy of the state to respect and 07 protect the rights of conscience of all persons who are involved in providing health 08 services. It is the purpose of this chapter to protect as a basic civil right the right of 09 all persons to refuse to counsel, advise, pay for, provide, perform, assist, or participate 10 directly or indirectly in providing or performing certain health services that violate the 11 persons' religious or moral convictions and to prohibit all forms of discrimination, 12 disqualification, coercion, disability, or liability of the persons by reason of their 13 refusals. 14 Sec. 18.17.020. Civil rights of conscience. (a) Subject to AS 18.12.050, a
01 person has the right not to counsel, advise, pay for, provide, perform, assist, or 02 participate directly or indirectly in providing or performing a health service if the 03 service includes a procedure that violates the person's religious or moral convictions 04 and the procedure is intended to end the life of an individual or involves an elective 05 abortion. 06 (b) Subject to AS 18.12.050, a person may not be required to counsel, advise, 07 pay for, provide, perform, assist, or participate directly or indirectly in providing or 08 performing a health service if the service includes a procedure that violates the 09 person's religious or moral convictions and the procedure is intended to end the life 10 of an individual or involves an elective abortion. 11 Sec. 18.17.030. Individual rights of conscience. (a) Subject to 12 AS 18.12.050, an individual may not be required to counsel, advise, pay for, provide, 13 perform, assist, or participate directly or indirectly in providing or performing a health 14 service if the service includes a procedure that violates the individual's religious or 15 moral convictions and the procedure is intended to end the life of an individual or 16 involves an elective abortion. 17 (b) An individual is not civilly, criminally, or administratively liable to a 18 person for refusing, upon request or assignment and except as provided under 19 AS 18.12.050, to counsel, advise, pay for, provide, perform, assist, or participate 20 directly or indirectly in providing or performing a health service if the service includes 21 a procedure that violates the individual's religious or moral convictions and the 22 procedure is intended to end the life of an individual or involves an elective abortion, 23 and if 24 (1) before the request or assignment, the individual notified the person 25 making the request or assignment of the individual's refusal to provide or perform that 26 type of health service and, if requested to do so, the individual stated the refusal in 27 writing; or 28 (2) within 24 hours after being asked or assigned to provide or perform 29 the health service, the individual notified the person making the request or assignment 30 of the individual's refusal. 31 (c) A person may not discriminate against, penalize, discipline, or retaliate
01 against an individual in employment; privileges; benefits; remuneration; promotion; 02 termination of employment; eligibility for admission to, renewal or participation in, or 03 graduation from an educational, study, or training program; or a grant, contract, or 04 other program because of the individual's refusal or unwillingness to counsel, advise, 05 pay for, provide, perform, assist, or participate directly or indirectly in providing or 06 performing a health service if the service includes a procedure that violates the 07 individual's religious or moral convictions and the procedure is not required under 08 AS 18.12.050 and is intended to end the life of an individual or the procedure involves 09 an elective abortion. 10 Sec. 18.17.040. Institutional rights of conscience. (a) A health care 11 institution may not be required to counsel, advise, pay for, provide, perform, assist, or 12 participate in providing or performing a health service if the service includes a 13 procedure that violates the religious or moral convictions of a majority of the board 14 of directors or other administrative head of the institution or of a majority of its 15 owners or partners and the procedure is intended to end the life of an individual or 16 involves an elective abortion. A health care institution is not required to admit or keep 17 a patient for the purpose of providing to that patient a health service if the service 18 includes a procedure that violates the religious or moral convictions of a majority of 19 the board of directors or other administrative head of the institution or of a majority 20 of its owners or partners and the procedure is intended to end the life of an individual 21 or involves an elective abortion. 22 (b) A health care institution is not civilly, criminally, or administratively liable 23 to a person for refusing to participate directly or indirectly in providing or performing 24 a health service if the service includes a procedure that violates the religious or moral 25 convictions of a majority of the board of directors or other administrative head of the 26 institution or of a majority of its owners or partners and the procedure is intended to 27 end the life of an individual or involves an elective abortion, and if the institution 28 (1) posted notice of its refusal policy in plain sight in the admission 29 area of the institution before the health service is requested; or 30 (2) within 24 hours after receiving the request, notified the person 31 requesting the health service of its refusal and there has been no irreversible change
01 in the circumstances of the patient or person making the request during the time 02 between making the request and the institution's refusal that would make it unjust for 03 the institution to refuse the request. 04 (c) A person may not discriminate or retaliate against a health care institution 05 in a grant, contract, or program because of the institution's refusal to counsel, advise, 06 pay for, provide, perform, assist, or participate directly or indirectly in providing or 07 performing a health service if the service includes a procedure that violates the 08 religious or moral convictions of a majority of the board of directors or other 09 administrative head of the institution or of a majority of its owners or partners and the 10 procedure is intended to end the life of an individual or involves an elective abortion. 11 Sec. 18.17.050. Exceptions. (a) This chapter does not relieve a person from 12 liability to pay for a health service, for which the person freely and knowingly 13 contracted to pay, that was performed before a timely conscientious objection was 14 asserted by the person. 15 (b) A health care institution or a department or division of the institution that 16 is established for the sole or primary purpose of providing specific types of health 17 services may exclude an individual who objects to a procedure from employment in 18 a position for which the performance of the services is a necessary and substantial 19 responsibility if the individual's moral or conscience rights cannot be reasonably 20 accommodated by diligent effort. In this paragraph, "procedure" means a medical 21 procedure intended to end the life of an individual or involving an elective abortion. 22 Sec. 18.17.060. Remedies. (a) Notwithstanding other provisions of law, a 23 person injured by an act or omission that violates a provision of this chapter may 24 obtain an injunction and is entitled to receive three times the actual damages sustained 25 by the person or $3,000 for each violation, whichever is greater. 26 (b) Remedies provided for under this section are in addition to other remedies 27 that may be available under federal or state law. 28 Sec. 18.17.070. Federal requirements not affected. Nothing in this chapter 29 changes, modifies, or otherwise affects requirements of 42 U.S.C. 1395cc, 42 U.S.C. 30 1395dd, or 42 U.S.C. 1396a (a)(57) or (58). 31 Sec. 18.17.080. Definitions. In this chapter,
01 (1) "elective abortion" means the use or prescription of an instrument, 02 medicine, drug, or other substance or device to terminate the pregnancy of a woman 03 known to be pregnant, except that "elective abortion" does not include the termination 04 of a pregnancy 05 (A) if done with the intent to save the life or preserve the health 06 of the unborn child; 07 (B) if done with the intent to deliver the unborn child 08 prematurely to preserve the health of both the pregnant woman and the 09 woman's child; 10 (C) if done with the intent to remove a dead unborn child; 11 (D) if done with the intent to save the life of the pregnant 12 woman whose life is endangered by a physical disorder, illness, or injury if no 13 other medical procedure would save the life of the woman; 14 (E) that is a result of incest; or 15 (F) that is the result of an act of sexual assault that has been 16 reported to a peace officer; 17 (2) "health care institution" means a public or private corporation, 18 partnership, association, organization, agency, or other entity that is involved in 19 providing health care; in this paragraph, "entity" includes a hospital, clinic, physician's 20 office, medical school, nursing school, other health care training institution, insurance 21 organization, or financing organization; 22 (3) "health service" means a phase or type of service performed at a 23 health care institution or by a health professional, paraprofessional, or pharmacist or 24 by an employee of a health professional, paraprofessional, or pharmacist; in this 25 paragraph, "service" includes testing, diagnosis, prognosis, research, counseling, 26 therapy, treatment, family planning, referral, prescription, medication, surgery, the 27 termination of or failure to perform a procedure, and any necessary support services. 28 * Sec. 2. Under AS 01.10.030, if any provision of AS 18.17.010 - 18.17.080 or the 29 application of AS 18.17.010 - 18.17.080 to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the 30 remainder of AS 18.17.010 - 18.17.080 or the application of those statutes to other persons 31 or circumstances is not affected.