Washington D.C., Feb 27, 2009 / 16:10 pm
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is preparing to rescind regulations which made explicit the existing legal protections for medical workers who object to cooperating in abortions. The preparations have led one Republican congressman to charge President Obama’s administration with trying to implement the Freedom of Choice act “incrementally.”
On Friday the White House’s Office of Management and Budget (OMB) announced that it was reviewing a proposal to lift the Department of Health and Human Service’s (HHS) regulation. The move is the first step toward reversing the policy.
After the OMB reviews the proposal, it will be published in the Federal Register for a 30-day public comment period, according to federal law.
An unnamed official told the Washington Post that the HHS is concerned the rule is written “so vaguely that some have argued it could limit family planning counseling and even potentially blood transfusions and end-of-life care.”