The Trump administration last week released a new rule that addresses religious conscience protections for those involved in healthcare-related activities. The measure is intended to protect those with religious or moral objections from participating in in some services, such as assisted suicide.
Legal scholars, however, are warning that the measure may exceed government authority. That’s because the rule combines language from more than two dozen laws in ways that may exceed what is allowable, they argue.
The new measure “creates a rule that’s more insidious than the sum of its parts,” said Michelle Banker, senior counsel with the National Women’s Law Center, which plans to challenge the rule.
Roger Severino, director the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights, said the new rule simply enforces existing statutes. “No new law is being made here,” Severino added.
