A lawyer said that the new rule of President Joe Biden regarding the Affordable Care Act Section 1557's re-interpretation is said to punish Christian doctors refusing to do transgender surgery.
The Christian Headlines reported that religious freedom advocate and lawyer Luke Goodrich condemned the new law that prohibits discrimination for health care on the basis of sex.
"Biden's HHS just announced "beginning today" it will punish doctors and hospitals if they won't perform harmful gender-transition procedures against their conscience and medical judgment. This is bad for patients, doctors, and religious liberty," Goodrich tweeted on Monday with a link to the new law announced by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
"This follows the Biden Administration's appeal, filed just 3 weeks ago, seeking to overturn a court order that would protect religious doctors and hospitals from having to perform these harmful procedures," he added in another tweet that included his post last April 21 on the matter.
In the April 21 post, Goodrich said the Biden Administration filed an appeal that's set to "force" medical professionals to "perform potentially harmful gender-transition procedures against their conscience and professional judgment," which is "bad for patients, doctors, and religious liberty."
Goodrich, in a series of tweets on Monday, explained that the plaintiffs in the case were "religious doctors, hospitals, and clinics who joyfully serve all patients regardless of sex or gender" and do "routinely provide top-notch care to transgender patients" yet the "Biden Administration is fighting them in court" with threats of "multi-million dollar penalties."
Goodrich stressed that the new rule is also harmful to patients because current scientific evidence and even court cases show that it is. He provided links to the said references including the recent policy imposed in Sweden that bans the use of puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones. He highlighted the irony in the HHS statement that it will "comply with the Religious Freedom Restoration Act and 'applicable' court rulings" on the matter since the same office is "fighting to overturn in court" the "very rulings."
In line with these changes, Goodrich announced that they will file a permanent injunction to the new ruling of HHS.
"That is why, on Friday, we @BECKETlaw will be asking a federal court for a permanent injunction that protects patients, aligns with current medical research, and ensures doctors aren't forced to violate their religious beliefs and medical judgment," he said.
According to the HHS, the Office of Civil Rights "will interpret and enforce Section 1557 and Title IX's prohibitions on discrimination" on the basis of "sexual orientation" and "gender identity." HHS explained that the update was made in line with the US Supreme Court decision on the "Bostock v. Clayton County" case.
The HHS Secretary, Xavier Becerra, said that "everyone--including LGBTQ people--should be able to access health care, free from discrimination or interference, period". The department stressed, through its Assistant Secretary for Health Rachel Levine, that medical services should not be denied to anyone "because of who they are".
The Christian Headlines pointed out that former President Donald Trump interpreted Section 1557 to pertain to "male or female as determined by biology" such that "conscience and religious freedom protections" are offered by the rule.
Many faith-based organizations like the Christian Medical and Dental Associations supported Trump's rule on Section 1557 for it safeguarded religious freedom. Whereas, the Christian Headlines said, the Biden Administration protects transgenderism.
