This website brings together views, news, and studies on the phenomenon of so-called “conscientious objection” in healthcare, in particular for abortion and other reproductive healthcare. We have renamed it to belief-based care denial to be more accurate, as the practice is not conscientious and the term is stigmatizing against abortion.
Spanish information on this topic:
News
Following are some news articles on the topic of “conscientious objection”.
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South Africa – Report sparks row over abortion rights, healthcare workers’ beliefs
By Tshwarelo eseng Mogakane. Women in Limpopo and the Eastern Cape travel up to 300km to access reproductive healthcare services, withmany subsequently being denied the right to terminate pregnancies with dignity. A report by Section 27 and the Centre for…
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Doctors can refuse to treat LGBTQ+ patients in several states
These religious exemption laws lead to drops in HIV testing. April 10, 2026. An increasing number of U.S. states have passed laws that allow health care providers – including doctors, nurses and pharmacists – to refuse to treat patients based…
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Can a hospital hold a conscience?
by Jasmine Davis. 22 September 2025. When I first entered medical school and heard the term “conscientious objection”, I was slightly confused. Having been a war history enthusiast in high school, a conscientious objector to me had always been associated…
Victims of Belief-based Denial
Here is a collection of stories where women were refused a legal abortion and suffered serious injury or injustice as a result, including death in some cases. Doctors and hospitals are rarely punished or convicted for these wrongdoings.
Media coverage about serious consequences of the refusal to treat under CO usually only happens when a woman dies, or a woman or her family sues. Here are their stories we could find, but these must be the tip of the iceberg. We know nothing about the vast majority of refusals to treat under CO, or what happens to the victims.
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Harmonie (Oct 2025) – Illinois
Woman denied emergency care for ectopic pregnancy. “Honestly, it is so scary to be a woman in 2025 in America. Your religious beliefs should never come before my life or giving me life saving treatment. That’s just crazy to me.…
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Rachel Harrison (2025) – California
In September 2025, Rachel Harrison and her partner sued Dignity Health, a Catholic-affiliated hospital network, because she was denied emergency abortion care on two separate occasions. During the second episode, she developed a life-threatening blood infection. Her first pregnancy loss…
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31 women (anonymous) – USA
Women’s health and lives are frequently put at risk in American Catholic hospitals, but only a few cases are publicized. We count at least 80 so far – 31 mostly anonymous cases are included here, with the rest described individually…
Our Publications
This page lists writings on the topic of “conscientious objection” by Joyce Arthur and/or Christian Fiala. Writings by other scholars who support the “incompatibility thesis” can be found in Publications by Others.
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(June 2026) Exploring Canadians’ experiences with belief-based denial of contraception and abortion care
Results from a qualitative study. by Anvita Dixit, Joyce Arthur, Sneha Anantha, Kyle Drouillard, and Angel M. Foster. Abstract Objective: Although some evidence suggests that belief-based denial of contraception and abortion care can lead to harmful outcomes, rigorous research exploring…
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(Feb 2026) Patients oppose and are harmed by belief-based denial of reproductive care
by Joyce Arthur. Oral presentation at IWAC conference, Bangkok Thailand, IWAC conference, Feb 25, 2026 Highlights: In Canada, contraception and abortion care are medically necessary services, yet healthcare providers in Canada are allowed to refuse to provide care or referrals…
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(May 2025) Origin of “Conscientious Objection” in Health Care
How Care Denials Became Enshrined into Law Because of Abortion Abstract: The United Kingdom was the first country to legalize the refusal to provide health care in the name of “conscientious objection”, allowing doctors to refuse to provide abortions based…