[Pflienews] PharmFacts E-News Update: AZ court says pro-abort doc has 'rights of conscience'; Irving refutes Sullivan on abortifacient properties of Pill; more...

Sat Mar 28 07:35:45 MDT 2009

*PharmFacts E-News Update -- 28 Mar 2009 AD

AZ court: Pro-life beliefs have no standing, but an pro-abort doc has 
'rights of conscience'!
*
http://news.bna.com/hdln/display/no_alpha.adp?mode=si&frag_id=11675759&item=state%3aaz&cat=state
*Court Allows Claims of Hospital Physician
Terminated for Stance on Abortion Training

*
A physician who served as a hospital's chair of obstetrics and 
gynecology may pursue claims arising under the U.S. Constitution and 
Arizona law against an Arizona county, county officials, and private 
individuals who allegedly acted or conspired to have his employment 
terminated because of his support of abortion training for medical 
residents, according to three recent federal court decisions ( Carey v. 
Maricopa County, D. Ariz., No. 05-cv-2500, 3/12/09).
The U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona ruled that J. 
Christopher Carey could pursue claims against Maricopa County, members 
of the county Board of Supervisors, and individuals who were former 
colleagues because of actions they allegedly took separately and 
together to have him removed as chair at Maricopa Medical Center (MMC) 
and as program director for the Phoenix Integrated Residency in 
Obstetrics and Gynecology (PIROG) program because of his support of an 
abortion residency rotation.

The court, in one of three separate decisions, refused to dismiss claims 
Carey asserted against the county for alleged violations of his rights 
under the First and Fourteenth Amendments, for discrimination based on 
his religious and moral beliefs under both state and federal law, and 
for intentional interference with his contractual relationship with his 
practice group, MedPro, through which Carey provided his services to MMC 
and its county-affiliated parent Maricopa Integrated Health System (MIHS).

This decision, issued March 12, also addressed, and refused to dismiss, 
certain claims brought against two county board of supervisors members 
based on their alleged role in the violations of Carey's constitutional 
rights.
In the other two decisions, issued March 10, the court allowed certain 
related claims brought by Carey against two former MedPro colleagues, 
Dr. Marcela Moffit and Dr. William Chavira, who Carey charged conspired 
with the county and county officials to violate his First Amendment 
rights and who he also claimed interfered with his contractual 
relationship with MedPro.

The litigation stemmed from a contentious debate that arose within 
MedPro, and later within the community, in conjunction with PIROG and 
its practice of allowing medical residents who so desired to avail 
themselves of an abortion rotation in conjunction with a Planned 
Parenthood facility that provides reproductive service to women.
As PIROG's director after 2001, and as a physician with pro-abortion 
rights beliefs, Carey was allegedly targeted by a series of actions and 
investigations based on false accusations that were ultimately used by 
the county Board of Supervisors as a pretense to remove him from his 
leadership positions. Later forced to relinquish his position with 
MedPro, Carey sued the county and other allegedly responsible parties in 
2005.

Constitutional Claims
In refusing to grant the county's motion for summary judgment, the court 
found that Carey had established that his actions involved 
constitutionally protected speech, specifically his support of abortion 
training; that Carey had made statements and took positions outside his 
official duties; and that the county had taken action against him as 
part of its efforts to limit such training.

The court also found there was sufficient evidence that Carey suffered 
an adverse employment action in what the court said consisted of the 
stripping of his leadership positions and, likely, his constructive 
discharge by MedPro. He also demonstrated that the action was the result 
of a retaliatory motive on behalf of the county, the court said.
The court also said it did not matter that Carey was not employed 
directly by the county because independent contractors enjoy the same 
protections as employees. "To allow the county's delegation of hiring 
and staffing functions to a contractor to shield it from protecting the 
rights of its employees would reinforce formal, easily manipulable 
distinctions at the expense of protections to people who are, in every 
meaningful sense, public employees," the court said.
The court also found that Carey's discrimination and due process claims, 
which went "entirely unaddressed" by the county in its motion, also 
survived summary judgment.

With respect to the First Amendment claims asserted against Moffit and 
Chavira, the court concluded in each case that they qualified as "state 
actors" by virtue of their alleged interactions with the county and its 
officials in attempting to have Carey removed from his leadership 
positions at MMC and with PIROG. As such, the court said, summary 
judgment on these claims was not appropriate.

Defamation, Intentional Interference Claims
All three opinions also dealt with alleged instances of defamation and 
reached different conclusions with respect to specific individuals and 
statements that Carey claimed were intended to harm him, his employment 
relationship with MedPro, and his leadership positions with MMC and PIROG.
Claims based on a letter sent by a county Board of Supervisors member, 
Andrew Kunasek, to the MMC Medical Staff Executive Committee were not 
actionable because the letter was covered by Arizona's peer review 
privilege, the court ruled. However, other statements allegedly made by 
Kunasek, the court said, were not privileged.

With respect to statements allegedly made by Moffit and Chavira, some 
claims based on these statements were barred by the statute of 
limitations while others were not, the court said. One statement, for 
example, made in a letter Moffit sent to an official with the executive 
director of the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education was 
actionable because it may have been made maliciously and because it was 
not subject to any privilege, the court said.

Although the county's motion for summary judgment did not address the 
state law claims against the county defendants for intentional 
interference with Carey's contract with MedPro, the other two rulings 
did. In each case, the court concluded that there was sufficient 
evidence that both Moffit and Chavira had taken actions, independently 
and/or in conjunction with county officials, that tortiously interfered 
with Carey's MedPro contract.
The court's decisions are available at 
http://op.bna.com/hl.nsf/r?Open=psts-7qbrzh, 
http://op.bna.com/hl.nsf/r?Open=psts-7qbrzj, and 
http://op.bna.com/hl.nsf/r?Open=psts-7qbrzk.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/education/article5970842.ece
 From The Times
March 25, 2009

  Oxford pupils to text school nurse for morning-after pill

Sam Lister, Health Editor

Alpha Mummy: Parents have more sway than they think 
<http://timesonline.typepad.com/alphamummy/2009/03/can-the-morning.html>

Schoolgirls will be able to request the morning-after pill by text 
message to their school nurse as part of a scheme being introduced this 
year.

Six schools in Oxfordshire are to take part in the project after a rise 
in the number of teenage pregnancies in the county. Story continues at 
the link 
<http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/education/article5970842.ece>....

------------------------------------------------------------------------

http://www.lifeissues.net/writers/irv/irv_137sullivan_doubts.html

LifeIssues.net
*Response to Dr. Sullivan's "Doubts" About Hormonal 'Contraceptives"*

Dianne N. Irving, M.A., Ph.D. 
copyright March 24, 2009
Reproduced with Permission

    [[For a list of detailed scientific and philosophical references to
    my comments below, please see my articles:

        * *"Human Embryology and Church Teachings" *(September 15,
          2008), at:
          http://www.lifeissues.net/writers/irv/em/em_132embryologychurch1.html

        * *"Abortion: Correct application of natural law theory"*,
          Linacre Quarterly (Feb. 2000), at:
        * http://www.lifeissues.net/writers/irv/irv_08natlaw.html
        * *"Testimony Submitted to FDA Re Change of MAP to OTC Status"
          *(Nov. 19, 2004), at:
        * http://www.lifeissues.net/writers/irv/irv_85newdrug.html
        * *"What is 'bioethics'?" *(June 3, 2000), UFL Proceedings of
          the Conference 2000, in Joseph W. Koterski (ed.), Life and
          Learning X: Proceedings of the Tenth University Faculty For
          Life Conference (Washington, D.C.: University Faculty For
          Life, 2002), pp. 1-84, at:
        * http://www.lifeissues.net/writers/irv/irv_36whatisbioethics01.html]]

------------------------------------------------------------------------

    1. Introduction

Oddly enough, several related issues involving the early human embryo 
and the use of various "abortifacients" that apparently had been laid to 
rest for several years are currently having a "rebirth", if you will. 
For example, if ovulation and fertilization have taken place, could the 
use of such "contraceptives" be abortifacient and also cause the death 
of this early developing human embryo either while still in the woman's 
Fallopian tube or when attempting to implant in her uterus?

It might also be noted that there have been a number of such articles 
recently that also attempt to resuscitate one dubious interpretation of 
the "principle of doubt". That is, it is claimed, if one has doubt as to 
whether or not there is truly a living innocent human being present, 
then it is morally acceptable to use hormonal contraceptives.

Thus there are two things that might be pointed out to those who are 
truly sincere about forming their consciences well. First, this version 
of the principle of doubt (Jesuitical) has historically always been in 
contradiction to another version (Dominican) - the latter being that 
formally accepted by the Roman Catholic Church. That is, if there is a 
doubt, then one may not do it. Second, many of these articles 
purposefully attempt to create "doubts" where in fact none exist in 
order to justify the use of hormonal contraceptives. One thus often 
comes across phrases such as "we just don't know", "it is still an open 
question", "the debates are not yet settled", "we can't be sure", "there 
is insufficient evidence", etc.

In a 2006 article that is currently being circulated again, Dr. Dennis 
M. Sullivan, an Evangelical bioethicist, quite pastorally and gently 
presents his own case, concluding that because there is still such 
disagreement about the scientific facts (and other "doubts"), such 
hormonal contraceptives could in good conscience be used (*"The oral 
contraceptive as abortifacient: an analysis of the evidence"*, 
Perspectives on Science and Christian Faith, Vol. 58, No. 3, September 
2006, pp. 189-195; available from 
http://www.asa3.org/asa/PSCF/2006/PSCF9-06Sullivan).

Although Dr. Sullivan makes some excellent and helpful points in his 
analysis, there are several of them that perhaps need a bit of 
clarification - especially if one is truly concerned about a 
"well-formed" conscience. My response will focus on just a few of the 
main points that Dr. Sullivan employs.

Story continues at the link 
<http://www.lifeissues.net/writers/irv/irv_137sullivan_doubts.html>....
------------------------------------------------------------------------
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