Connecticut Catholic Hospitals’ Compromise Ends in Abortion Referrals

by Hilary White
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  HARTFORD, March 13, 2006 (LifeSiteNews.com) – The Catholic bishops of Connecticut thought they had the perfect compromise. But as Connecticut considers legislation that would force Catholic hospitals to prescribe the abortifacient drug, Plan B, Catholic hospitals are already as close as possible to the ethical edge.
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  Eight months ago, the Catholic hospitals of Connecticut adopted the so-called “Peoria Protocol” with the approval of Archbishop Henry J. Mansell of Hartford, and Bridgeport Bishop William E. Lori. Under the adopted protocol a test is given to a rape victim to determine if she is pregnant. If the tests are negative, the drug is administered to prevent ovulation. If she is, the hospital refers her to another hospital or outlet where she can obtain the drug called Plan B.
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  As the Associated Press put it, “According to Catholic teachings, life begins at conception, when the egg is fertilized.” The Catholic teaching, in this case, also coincides with every available textbook on human embryology and over 150 years of scientific evidence. This means, however that the Connecticut Catholic hospitals that refer pregnant women to another outlet for the morning after pill are indirectly procuring abortions.
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  The Peoria Protocol is popular with bishops and Catholic hospital ethics committees who are under increasing pressure to find ways around the Catholic teaching. In a similar case in the 1990’s, the German bishops were at odds with the Vatican for allowing their social service agencies to provide women seeking abortions with a government-approved certificate. In 1999, the bishops finally acquiesced and stopped the practice.
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  In Connecticut, the intervention is even more direct. Catholic hospitals in Hartford, Bridgeport, Waterbury and New Haven have been following the Peoria Protocol and said that not only do they give the woman a list of places to go, they will provide transportation as well.
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  The Peoria Protocol was developed by Dr. Gerald McShane and St Francis Medical Center Ethic’s committee in Peoria, IL. It has been criticized by pro-life groups who see it as a means for Catholic hospitals to avoid applying Catholic teaching and medical evidence that life begins at the moment of conception.
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  The Protocol fails both in medical and ethical application. Not only is it almost impossible to discover beyond a reasonable doubt if a woman is pregnant at such an early stage, Plan B also does not consistently stop ovulation. If it fails to do so, it may inhibit implantation, thereby causing an abortion. In addition, the drug may unfavourably alter the endometrial lining of the uterus regardless of when in the cycle it is used, with the effect persisting for days.
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  In the case of the Connecticut hospitals, the point may be moot since Connecticut is considering following the lead of other states that have made the distribution of the abortifacient drug mandatory for rape victims. Such laws are in place in Massachusetts, California, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, South Carolina and Washington.