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House committee hears hours of testimony on bill to protect health‑care workers' conscience rights
Summary
Lawmakers and witnesses debated HB 232, which would expand conscience protections for health‑care workers and related staff; supporters say it preserves diversity of belief and staffing, opponents say it would enable denials of contraception, abortion‑related care and other services and create accountability gaps.
The House Judiciary Committee heard more than two hours of testimony on HB 232, a measure introduced by Representative Mark Pearson that would expand statutory conscience protections for health‑care workers and other individuals who provide or facilitate medical services.
Supporters told the committee the bill aims to protect health‑care professionals from being forced to perform procedures that violate their ethics or religious beliefs and to retain workers in New Hampshire; opponents said the bill is overbroad, would permit refusals that harm patients and could leave patients without timely care.
Representative Mark Pearson, the bill’s prime sponsor, opened by describing the measure as limited to “conscience‑based objections to very specific procedures” and said it “does not permit a refusal to serve a person on the basis of their race, color … or any other protected characteristic.” He told the committee the bill’s primary goal is to keep physicians and other clinicians practicing in New Hampshire rather than…
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