Conscience Clauses and Ideological Bias

Click to increase image sizeClick to decrease image size

This article refers to:

Unjustified Asymmetry: Positive Claims of Conscience and Heartbeat Bills

This article is referred to by:

Finding Our Balance in the Asymmetry Debate

Notes

1 When Arkansas lawmakers overrode the governor’s veto on April 6, 2021, Arkansas became the first U.S. state to ban gender-affirming therapy for minors (Arkansas Act 626, “Arkansas Save Adolescents from Experimentation (SAFE) Act”). The law does not include a conscience clause. Thus, it does not accommodate physicians who cannot in good conscience comply because of an evidence-based belief that providing the proscribed care can be essential to the health and well-being of a patient (Martin, Sandberg, and Shumer 2021). Act 626 is available online at: https://www.arkleg.state.ar.us/Acts/FTPDocument?path=%2FACTS%2F2021R%2FPublic%2F&file=626.pdf&ddBienniumSession=2021%2F2021R. Accessed May 22, 2021.

2 For state-by-state counselling requirements, see Guttmacher Institute, “Counseling and Waiting Periods for Abortion,” available online at: https://www.guttmacher.org/state-policy/explore/counseling-and-waiting-periods-abortion. Accessed May 20, 2021. For state-by-state ultrasound requirements, see Guttmacher Institute, “Requirements for Ultrasound,” available online at: https://www.guttmacher.org/state-policy/explore/requirements-ultrasound. Accessed May 20, 2021.