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In this week’s Inside EMS quick clip, hosts Chris Cebollero and Kelly Grayson discuss a religious freedom bill passed by the Michigan House of Representatives, and whether it could allow EMT’s to refuse treatment based on religious beliefs.
They quote from an EMS.1 news analysis that questions, “Should religious beliefs trump an EMS provider’s obligation to care for patients that request our services
“I can’t believe that I’m reading this,” Cebollero said. Is it really coming down to the fact, he asked, that if someone is in cardiac arrest, an EMT would have the opportunity to not treat a patient whose sexual orientation is against his or her beliefs?
“This has got to be the most egregious thing I’ve heard in our career field since I’ve been doing this job,” he said.
Grayson agreed, saying the legislation is being taken to the logical extreme.
“I think it’s incredibly poorly conceived, and needs to be immediately repealed,” Grayson said. “I don’t want my politicians meddling in my religious beliefs and in my church, and I don’t want my preachers telling me how to vote.”
