On November 29th, the ACLU in Detroit, joined by their partners in Ann Arbor and New York, filed a complaint in the US District Court (Eastern District of Michigan) against the US Conference of Catholic Bishops and affiliated individuals on behalf of a Muskegon woman whose horrendous nightmare at the hands of ER personnel at a Catholic hospital was in sore need of redress.
Tamesha rushed to Mercy Health Partners in Muskegon, Michigan, when her water broke after only 18 weeks of pregnancy. Based on the bishops' religious directives, the hospital sent her home twice even though Tamesha was in excruciating pain; there was virtually no chance that her pregnancy could survive, and continuing the pregnancy posed significant risks to her health.
Because of its Catholic affiliation and binding directives, the hospital told Tamesha that there was nothing it could do and did not tell Tamesha that terminating her pregnancy was an option and the safest course for her condition. When Tamesha returned to the hospital a third time in extreme distress and with an infection, the hospital once again prepared to send her home. While staff prepared her discharge paperwork, she began to deliver. Only then did the hospital begin tending to Tamesha's miscarriage.
This is my home town. Thanks to a recent hospital merger, this is the ONLY hospital in my home town. This is the hospital that pipes daily prayers over the loudspeakers, restricts contraception and DENIES HEALTHCARE to that segment of the population that gets pregnant. Lemme guess: are there any women bishops making these directives?
Sure, Tamesha could have opted to have her emergency miscarriage at a non-Catholic hospital an hour away, but from the looks of things, she didn't have that kind of time.
Since when do religious directives trump the Hippocratic Oath?
The intertubes here in Michigan are buzzing with this story. I've seen lots of posts from similarly situated Muskegon women. You go get 'em, ACLU. Make this a national disgrace. And somebody call Pope Francis, cuz I'll bet he'll be PISSED!