Abortion: Why Doctors Should have the Right to Refuse

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The First Amendment states, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.” This amendment to our Constitution guarantees the citizens of the United States of America the right to live according to their belief system and values and not have the government interfering and dictating how they are to conduct themselves. This amendment grants us freedom to do as we please as long as it is in the confines of being legal. If the activity is illegal we, obviously, must face the consequences of our actions. Throughout the abortion debate there have been many differing opinions in regards to a woman’s right to chose to terminate her pregnancy. Abortion is one of those rights, which is protected according to the Supreme Court, in the United States Constitution. One aspect that I have not thought of until researching a topic for this paper is the rights of the physician to refuse performing an abortion. Upon researching this issue, I discovered some people that would like to limit doctors First Amendment rights. With the United States Constitution to back them up, doctors should have the right to refuse performing abortions because it may be against their moral beliefs and their Hippocratic Oath, even though people tend to think that a woman’s right to an abortion supersedes the physician’s right because of the physician’s social status.

First, doctors should have the right to refuse performing abortions because it is against their moral beliefs. According to Kaveny,

The Church Amendment (1973) protects the right...

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...etrieved (2010, March 20) from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hippocratic_Oath

May, T., & Aulisio, M.. (2009). Personal morality and professional obligations: rights of conscience and informed consent. Perspectives in biology and medicine, 52(1), 30-8. Retrieved March 3, 2010, from Research Library. (Document ID: 1635642341).http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=1635642341& sid=1&Fmt=3&clientId=74379&RQT=309&VName=PQD

Medical school loans. (2008). Retrieved from http://www.studentdoc.com/medical-school-loans.html

Meyers, Christopher, & Woods, Robert D. (1996). An obligation to provide abortion services: what happens when physicians refuse? Journal of Medical Ethics, 22(2), 115. Retrieved March 7, 2010, from ProQuest Nursing & Allied Health Source. (Document ID: 9580975). http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?

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