Catholic Hospitals Perpetually Has Been Abolishing Patient's Rights When US Laws Defer To Religious Dogma

Informed consent is a fundamental principle of modern healthcare, which means that a patient undergoing treatment has the right to know several things about that treatment, including all known risks and all medically accepted alternatives. 

And then, before the treatment commences, a patient should be required to sign a document that verifies that all information has been presented. In the United States, Catholic healthcare systems do not fully participate in informed consent. 

That’s because physicians who practice in those networks are obliged to follow the Ethical and Religious Directives for Catholic Health Care Services (ERD), issued by the U.S. Council of Catholic Bishops. The ERD forbids treatments that incorporate, among other things, contraception, abortion, fertility assistance, and certain options available to terminally ill patients. 

And because Catholic healthcare systems are religious organizations, they are exempt by law from even letting their patients know that treatments not provided in their facilities may be available elsewhere. These religious exemptions extend to medical education as well.