AN ACT relating to the recruitment and retention of health care professionals and declaring an emergency.

Create new sections of KRS Chapter 344 to ensure federal law relating to emergency medical treatment and the collection of evidence is not overridden; define terms; prohibit discrimination against health care professionals who decline to perform procedures that violate their conscience; grant health care professionals the right not to participate in services that violate their conscience; exempt health care professionals from liability for exercising these rights; prohibit hiring or licensing authorities from reprimanding health care…

Introduced: February 11, 2025

Last action: March 13, 2025

2nd Reading, To Rules

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This bill would allow health care professionals in Kentucky to refuse to perform medical procedures that conflict with their personal or moral beliefs, without facing punishment from employers or licensing boards. It also shields them from legal liability for such refusals and gives them the right to see any complaints filed against them related to these decisions. Health care professionals who believe their rights under this law were violated could take the matter to civil court. Who it may affect: health care professionals, hospitals and medical employers, and patients seeking medical procedures that a provider may decline on conscience grounds.

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