Description
Book SynopsisOne out of every six patients in the United States is treated in a Catholic hospital that follows the policies of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. These policies prohibit abortion, sterilization, contraception, some treatments for miscarriage and gender confirmation, and other reproductive care, undermining hard-won patients’ rights to bodily autonomy and informed decision-making. Drawing on rich interviews with patients and providers, this book reveals both how the bishops’ directives operate and how people inside Catholic hospitals navigate the resulting restrictions on medical practice. In doing so,
Bishops and Bodies fleshes out a vivid picture of how The Church’s stance on sex, reproduction, and “life” itself manifests in institutions that affect us all.
Trade Review"Shortly after the Supreme Court issued its opinion in
Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, horrific stories began to emerge from hospitals across the country. To many, these denials of emergency medical care seemed to be an alarming new consequence of the Supreme Court’s decision. Lori Freedman, however, has documented such stories for well over a decade. We would do well to study her work carefully — including her book
Bishops and Bodies: Reproductive Care in American Catholic Hospitals — in this critical moment. * Catholics for Choice *
“It’s a recipe for disaster—the Catholic Church wants the most births possible, and most American women want to limit their childbearing and protect their health with modern advances in contraception and abortion. Yet in the name of corporate conscience, our anachronistic laws allow Catholic healthcare to require physicians of all faiths to do things that violate medical ethics and often constitute malpractice. Freedman’s compelling research, rich storytelling, and incisive analysis reveal how outrageous Bishop-knows-best medicine really is.” -- Katie Watson * author of Scarlet A: The Ethics, Law and Politics of Ordinary Abortion *
"
Bishops and Bodies is poised to make a significant impact not just in social science and medical humanities circles, but in broader public conversations about health care, reproductive rights, and the place of religion in society." -- Jessica Martucci * author of Back to the Breast: Natural Motherhood and Breastfeeding in America *
Table of ContentsForeword by Debra Stulberg
Prologue: Unsafe and Unequal
Introduction: Doctrinal Iatrogenesis
1 Growth: How Catholic Health Care Expanded
2 Inferior: How Catholic Directives Contradict Medical Standards
3 Consumer Medicine? Patients and the Illusion of Choice
4 Emergencies: Patient Loss and Suffering
5 Mostly Above-Board Workarounds
6 Under the Radar Workarounds
7 Separation of Church and Hospital
8 Conclusion
Acknowledgements
Appendix
Notes
Index
