HB0115

Establishes the Medical Ethics Defense Act, allowing health care providers, institutions, and payers to refuse to participate in or pay for health care services based on conscience, and prohibits discrimination for exercising these rights.

• Grants health care providers, institutions, and payers the right to refuse to participate in or pay for health care services that violate their ethical, moral, or religious beliefs, limited to specific services and not waiving duties to provide services that do not violate conscience or emergency medical treatment. (W.S. 35-34-103(a))
• Allows religious health care organizations to make employment, staffing, contracting, and admitting privilege decisions consistent with their religious beliefs if they hold themselves out as religious and have internal policies implementing those beliefs. (W.S. 35-34-103(b))
• Requires health care providers to affirmatively consent in writing before being scheduled for, assigned, or requested to participate in abortion services. (W.S. 35-34-103(c))
• Mandates health care institutions and payers adopt internal policies and procedures for exercising conscience-based refusals and for resolving conflicts arising from such refusals. (W.S. 35-34-103(d), W.S. 35-34-103(e))
• Requires health care payers to file and update conscience-based refusal policies annually with the state insurance department, including a comprehensive list by billing code of products, services, and procedures they will not pay for based on conscience. (W.S. 35-34-103(f), W.S. 35-34-103(g))
• Prohibits discrimination against health care providers, institutions, or payers for exercising conscience-based refusals, and prohibits discrimination against those who report violations or participate in related proceedings. (W.S. 35-34-104(a), W.S. 35-34-104(b))
• Protects health care providers from discrimination for disclosing information about violations of federal or state law, standards of care, or gross mismanagement or abuse. (W.S. 35-34-104(c))
• Prohibits state health department and licensing agencies from revoking or threatening to revoke a health care provider's license based on protected speech activity unless the agency demonstrates beyond a reasonable doubt that the speech directly caused physical harm to a patient.