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Have you experienced discrimination?

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Civil Rights Complaint Information

You may file a complaint under the Federal Health Care Provider Conscience Protection Statutes if you believe you have experienced discrimination because you:

  • Objected to, participated in or refused to participate in specific medical procedures, including abortion and sterilization, and related training and research activities
  • Were coerced into performing procedures that are against your religious or moral beliefs
  • Refused to provide healthcare items or services for the purpose of causing, or assisting in causing, the death of an individual, such as by assisted suicide or euthanasia

Specific Requirements

What are the specific requirements of the federal healthcare provider conscience protection laws?

Covered entities may not, if it would be contrary to the individual’s or healthcare entity’s religious beliefs or moral convictions:

  • Require the individual to participate in sterilization or abortion;
  • Require the entity to make its facilities available for sterilization or abortion;
  • Require the entity to provide personnel to participate in sterilization or abortion;
  • Discriminate against any physician or healthcare personnel in employment or staff privileges because the individual participated in or refused to participate in sterilization or abortion;
  • Discriminate against any physician or healthcare personnel in employment or staff privileges because the individual participated in or refused to participate in any lawful health service or research activity;
  • Deny admission to or otherwise discriminate against any training program applicant (including applicants for internships or residencies) because of the applicant’s reluctance or willingness to participate in sterilization or abortion; or
  • Discriminate against any individual or institutional health care entity that does not train in the performance of abortions or provide, pay for, provide coverage of, or refer for abortion.

Covered entities must:

  • Deem accredited any postgraduate physician training program that would be accredited, but for the reliance on an accrediting standard that (regardless of whether such standard provides exceptions or exemptions) requires an entity to perform abortions; or provide training for abortions.

What can you do about discrimination?

 

Seek legal help

Seek initial counsel, without obligation, from a non-profit legal organization. Read More >>

 

Report to HHS

Report discrimination to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office for Civil Rights. Read More >>

 

Report to EEOC

Report workplace discrimination to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Read More >>

Report to HHS

Nonprofit Legal Firms​

​The non-profit, public interest legal foundations below typically provide counsel without cost to clients.

How to File an HHS Conscience Complaint

Filing a complaint is a simple, straightforward proposition: You tell your story of what happened--who, what, when, where.

Maybe as a result of conscience or relgious faith issues, you were:

  • fired;
  • pressured to participate in a conscientiously objectionable action or referral;
  • denied privileges;
  • denied admission to an educational or training program;
  • denied tenure;
  • penalized;
  • subjected to any other form of discrimination based on your conscience and religious convictions.

Even if your story occurred decades ago, you can still report it, since investigating conscience discrimination cases is not legally constrained by a lapse of time.

No need for legalese, no complicated forms. You can file a complaint with the U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services Office of Civil Rights—online or via mail, fax, or e-mail.

Learn more about how to file a complaint.

Report to EEOC

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII) protects applicants and employees from religious discrimination in hiring, firing, promotions, training, wages, and benefits, as well as from a hostile work environment. Title VII also makes it illegal to retaliate against a person for complaining about discrimination, filing a charge of discrimination, or participating in an employment discrimination investigation or lawsuit. The law requires that employers reasonably accommodate applicants’ and employees’ sincerely-held religious observances and practices, unless doing so would impose an undue hardship on the operation of the employer’s business.

Filing A Charge of Discrimination With EEOC
If you believe that you have been discriminated against at work because of your race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, gender identity, and sexual orientation), national  origin, age (40 or older), disability or genetic information, you can file a Charge of Discrimination. A charge of discrimination is a signed statement  asserting that an employer, union or labor organization engaged in employment discrimination. It requests EEOC to take remedial action. Read Here >>