New Mexico’s Democratic Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham signed a bill on April 4 that clarifies conscience protections for medical professionals who object to assisted suicide.
Senate Bill 471 modifies the state’s assisted suicide law to ensure that a medical provider will “not be subject to criminal liability, licensing sanctions or other professional disciplinary action” for “refusing, for reasons of conscience, to participate in medical aid in dying in any way, which includes refusing to provide information on medical aid in dying to a patient and refusing to refer a patient to any entity or individual who is able and willing to assist the patient in obtaining medical aid in dying.”
The legislation was introduced after Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) sued the state in December 2022 on behalf of Dr. Mark D. Lacy and the Christian Medical & Dental Associations (CMDA) for its 2021 assisted suicide law, which required physicians to offer information about assisted suicide, regardless of their personal beliefs.
According to ADF, “the law required physicians who are conscientious objectors to facilitate suicide by informing patients about assisted suicide and referring patients to physicians and organizations who will participate in ending their lives.” Those who chose not to comply faced criminal sanctions and ran the risk of losing their medical licenses.
After ADF attorneys sued NM for forcing doctors to facilitate physician-assisted suicide, the state rushed to enact a law that allows doctors to decline participation in the procedure.
Today, ADF attorneys filed a stipulated dismissal to dismiss our lawsuit against the state.
— Alliance Defending Freedom (@ADFLegal) April 5, 2023
“We commend the New Mexico Legislature and Gov. Lujan Grisham for enacting this critical law to protect health care professionals who object to assisted suicide for reasons of conscience or faith,” said ADF Senior Counsel Mark Lippelmann. “Dr. Lacy and the thousands of other Christian medical professionals we represent believe every life is sacred and full of inherent value, and that assisted suicide ends an innocent human life without justification. The government should never force doctors to surrender their religious, moral, and ethical convictions.”
CMDA also released a statement following the bill’s passage. “We strive to perform our work according to the dictates of our faith and professional ethics, including the belief that every life is precious. We’re grateful New Mexico quickly responded to our lawsuit by enacting protections for conscientious physicians,” said Dr. Jeffrey Barrows, CMDA senior vice president of bioethics and public policy.
Following news of the bill’s signing, ADF announced that it filed a stipulated dismissal with the court Wednesday to dismiss its lawsuit.
