A Catholic hospital has refused to sterilise a woman pregnant with her third child and suffering from a benign brain tumour despite a specialist recommending the treatment.
Jessica Mann, 34, from Flushing, Michigan, was diagnosed with two tumours ten years ago, and underwent surgery to have one removed. The second still exists and is being constantly monitored.
When Mrs Mann became pregnant with her second child three years ago it was considered a high-risk pregnancy and she delivered via Caesarean section under full anaesthetic.
Her neuro specialist recommended having a tubal ligation - commonly known as getting one’s “tubes tied” while delivering her third child, which is due next month.
But her Genesys Regional Medical Centre in Michigan refused to carry out the procedure on religious grounds. Under US federal law, medical facilities and their staff can object to sterilization procedures on religious grounds without fear of prosecution. An administrator at the hospital suggested that her best recourse is to have the C-section and then the sterilisation procedure at a later date at another hospital, Mrs Mann said.
The US Conference of Catholic Bishops has issued directives to Catholic hospitals that they must not promote contraceptives, provide abortions or advice on having an abortion, and do not allow any sterilisation procedures.
Meanwhile, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) have taken up the mother-of-three’s case and sent a letter of demand to the hospital to overturn their refusal to carry out the procedure. They say that the refusal puts Mrs Mann in a position where she will have to undergo a second operation shortly after birth, which is an unnecessary risk to her long-term health.
The ACLU said in a statement: “Although everyone has a right to practice their religion as they see fit, religion cannot be used to harm others, which is what is happening here.”
While the number of hospital facilities in the US is falling, there has been a significant rise in the number of Catholic-funded hospitals. Ten of the 25 largest hospitals in the US are Catholic-funded and one in nine of every hospital bed is funded by Catholic money.
Tubal ligation - the sterilisation procedure most commonly known as having ones tubes tied - has become the second most popular form of contraception for women in the US. Around 700,000 tubal ligations are performed in the US every year.
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