Quote:The 2025 Medical Ethics Defense Act allows physicians to deny care to patients whose "lifestyles" they disagree with

Quote:Last night at a town hall in Jonesborough, Tennessee, a woman shared her story: she was denied prenatal care by her OB-GYN because the doctor objected to the fact that she isn’t married. She’s been with her partner for 15 years and has a 13-year-old son.

The doctor told her that because she was unwed, according to a new law in Tennessee, he didn’t feel comfortable treating her because it went against his “Christian values.”

Now, she’s traveling out of state to Virginia to receive prenatal care.

This is exactly what Republicans were counting on. Earlier this year, the state passed the 2025 Medical Ethics Defense Act, which gives physicians, and even insurers, the legal right to deny care to patients based on any religious, moral, or ethical belief. There are no protections for people in rural areas with limited options. There’s no requirement to refer patients elsewhere. And there’s no legal recourse. The woman at the town hall explained that her representatives are not responsive to her questions, even as she repeatedly calls Sen. Marsha Blackburn. When she reached staff at Sen. Bill Hagerty’s office, they told her, “he’s not obligated to listen to his constituents.”