Catholic hospital sued for refusing breast implants to “transgendered”

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Seton Medical Center in Daly City, CA

Daly City, Calif., Jan 9, 2008 / 05:15 am (CNA).- A Catholic-run hospital faces a lawsuit for refusing breast augmentation surgery to a transgendered person, the San Jose Mercury News reports.

Charlene Hastings, a 57-year-old San Franciscan, inquired about the surgery at Seton Medical Center. According to Hastings, a surgical coordinator refused to allow the surgery. "She was saying, 'It's not God's will,' " Hastings said. "I couldn't believe it. It's a blatant case of discrimination."

Hastings, who said he was raised Catholic, filed the lawsuit in San Francisco Court on December 21.

Hastings has already had major sex-change surgery to make his body resemble a woman’s. He chose a plastic surgeon with privileges at Seton to perform the augmentation surgery. According to Hastings, the surgeon, Dr. Leonard Gray, told him that Seton no longer allowed such operations to be performed on transgendered patients.

Seton Medical Center was previously owned by a large hospital conglomerate, Catholic Healthcare West, during which time it apparently allowed the surgery to transgender people. The Daughters of Charity Health System took ownership of the hospital in 2002, and halted the surgeries in 2006 after learning they were taking place.

Kristina Wertz, legal director of the Transgender Law Center in San Francisco, claimed Seton and other area hospitals put up “significant barriers” to care. Wertz believed the hospital’s policy violates the Unruh Act, a state law that prohibits discrimination on the basis of gender, gender identity, or sexual orientation. “There's simply no religious exemption in the Unruh Act," Wertz said. "We're talking about a type of care that's OK for one class but not another.”

Elizabeth Nikels, vice president of communications for Daughters of Charity, told the Mercury News that the surgical coordinator was following hospital policy in refusing Hastings' surgery.

"Seton Medical Center provides medically necessary services to all individuals," Nikels said in a prepared statement. "However, the hospital does not perform surgical procedures contrary to Catholic teaching; for example, abortion, direct euthanasia, transgender surgery or any of its related components."

When contacted by Catholic News Agency for further comment, Nikels said she could not speak about ongoing litigation.

Comments: 8

Subscriber comments:

Published by: jenni
usa 11/23/2009 09:37 PM EST

The hospital "...refused to allow the Surgery..." because the surgical coordinator believes "It's not God's will". This is interesting, considering that the Bible doesn’t speak against an individual changing gender. Statements like this are the result of twisting the scripture to support preexisting prejudice. Anti-transgender prejudice is also clear when the writer of this article refers to the medical treatment of this condition as surgery to make “his” body resemble a woman’s. Based on the patients female name and the prior surgical procedures, this woman is almost certainly now legally recognized as female, so using gender inappropriate pronouns also shows a discriminatory disregard for the individuals sex or gender. Transsexualism has been well researched and documented, and treatment procedures and standards have been established by the medical community. These procedures have a very high rate of success in treatment and enable transgendered individuals to lead happy and fulfilling lives. On the other hand, withholding appropriate treatment had been shown to result in very high rates of suicide. It appears to be not only an issue of discrimination resulting from religious prejudice, but also of great concern is that they ignore established standards of care and thereby neglect the needs of their patients for treatment. It is time for religion to get out of the healthcare business.

Published by: Lisa Maria
Columbus 09/14/2009 02:07 PM EST

I was refusing breast implants because I was transgendered at OSU in Columbus, Ohio and this is state run!

Published by: v. llamas
san francisco, calif. 03/08/2008 10:42 PM EST

Re Sophia Shapira's comment, the literature that I have read on transsexuality implies that this is more of a psychological problem. Society cannot be held responsible for every single human beings chosen lifestyle and how they react in situations that may influence themselves to commit suicide. However, there are many organizations that are out there to help people if they do feel this way. Suicide Crisis is one organization that reaches out to those who are suicidal. There are also physicians who specialize in Psychiatry for those who need it. The county will allow free services if the patient warrants it.
In America there are many "helping hands" for those who need it and seek it. The Catholic Church is alway labeled as the "Bad Guy" when it comes to issues such as homosexuality, same sex marriage, etc., but there are many nonCatholics who will agree heartily with the stand taken by the Church. This does not mean that they hate homosexuals, transsexuals, etc,. What it means is that they uphold traditional moral law handed down to us by Our Creator and those who abide by His laws.
5th Commandment: Thou Shalt Not Kill (this one takes in disregard for the flesh...its specific appearance..that God has given us)

Published by: v. llamas
san francisco, calif., usa 03/08/2008 10:29 PM EST

To comment on Natalie Russell's email. She is confusing the medical "care" received in a Catholic hospital with a "medical" procedure.
The medical procedure in question deals with "changing the appearance of one's body". Being brought up a Catholic, Natalie should know that there is nothing new about Catholic teaching being against surgical reconstruction of a body in an effort to "recreate" what the Divine Creator has mandated. Catholic teaching does not condone playing God in any way. Instead of belittling this idea, Natalie, as a Catholic, should applaud the church in its efforts to uphold the truth of God. In Natalie's case, the truth is that no matter how often she may change her body, she/he is still the same sex God gifted him/her with. Furthermore, I am sure in the case of a medical emergency Natalie would be treated with the dignity and respect, (maybe even more so there than at a nonCatholic hospital) that he/she deserves regardless of her gender, faith or ethnicity.
I am sorry Natalie has taken such a drastic unwarranted view towards Catholic hospitals because of one situation, which by the way, had nothing to do with a patient actually receiving medical care as much as it had to do with God's natural law.

Published by: Zuma
Santa Rosa 03/04/2008 08:05 AM EST

This is a "Catholic" hospital and that implies it will follow Catholic rules in its activities.
It has no obligation to perform sex change operations as no one has died as a result of not receiving one. Nor has any died from not receiving breast reduction or augmentation!
For those who dont like the idea, go to a Jewish, Protestant, or non religios hospital!
Catholic hospitals have right to follow thier beliefs and religion in this regard.
I think any juror would think the same way! Sorry but some of us still believe there is a right to practice our Catholic religion in this country! We also believe in our Pope and Jesus! We have little belief in sex operations!

Published by: Eric Slate
Chattanooga, TN - USA 01/15/2008 01:43 PM EST

Judging by the information in the story, the man in question asked for an elective surgery from an institution that has reasonable moral grounds for refusing. People who sue over a perceived right to have someone else perform a medical procedure, they necessarily implie that medical professionals do not have the power to refuse to take part in operations that they find contradict their morals.
Also, respect for human dignity has nothing at all to do with breast implants. The purpose of medicine is to correct real physical problems.

Perhaps these previous commentors are suggesting that a hospital spend some of its limited resources (one-time-use items) on an unnecessary operation at the cost of some REAL medical treatment (like a heart transplant). I appreciate the hospital's view of medical care and respect its refusal to administer what medical treatments it views as destructive. I also feel much safer that a catholic hospital won't have squandered its resources and should have enough for me or my family if we should need some REAL medical attention.

Published by: Sophia Shapira
Oak Ridge, TN - USA 01/10/2008 03:50 PM EST

There is strong evidence that transsexuals who are denied treatment are far more likely to commit suicide and suffer from other health problems. If the Daughters of Charity demand that a surgeon withhold such treatment, then that obviously means that (at least as far as they are concerned) the Consistent-Life ethic (which Catholics *supposedly* hold for all human beings in all stages of life) obviously doesn't apply to transsexuals.

Of course - some people might try to argue that it is our choice to be transsexual in the first place - and that we brought that upon ourselves. However, as evidence increasingly mounts that this is not the case - this viewpoint is less and less a matter of one's personal opinion, and more and more a matter of ignoring the blatant evidence out there.

If the Magisterium doesn't fix itself there, this will end up being a scandal to the Church as great as the Gallileo scandal in stupidity, and far greater in terms of who is harmed by it.

Published by: Natalie Russell
Los Angeles, CA 01/09/2008 12:02 PM EST

I have always thought to myself that if injured, if in need of a hospital, a Catholic hospital would be fine. While I was born transsexual, Catholic ethics and respect would at least give dignity and respect along with medical services. By the tone of Catholic reporting on this incident, I now know that no dignity nor respect would be offered. With that the case, then I can not place medical trust in a Catholic institution. How can anyone trust any institution that openly disrespects, dishonors, and publicly offers indignity to a whole class of possible patients? God, I pray I never am hurt and taken to a Catholic hospital, for they shall surely not give me the best of care, but instead will offer indignity and the most discourteous of behavior. Who knows what horrors they might do to an unconscious trans-person?

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