Connecticut Catholic Conference Wrong to Allow 'Plan B' in Catholic Hospitals

    WASHINGTON, Sept. 28 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- "The actions of the
 Connecticut Catholic Conference are an outrage and a crime," said Judie
 Brown, president of American Life League. "It's bad enough to allow
 so-called emergency contraception in Catholic hospitals, but to claim that
 the Church has never officially ruled on such matters is completely
 untrue."
     The Connecticut Catholic Conference released a statement that allows
 personnel at Catholic hospitals to give the Plan B pill regimen to rape
 victims. The statement said, "in accordance with Catholic moral teaching,
 these hospitals provide emergency contraception after appropriate testing."
     "We must point out that there is no foolproof test that will assure
 that the victim of rape has not already conceived a child," Brown said.
     "The CCC further claims that the teaching authority of the Church has
 not definitively resolved this matter and that there is serious doubt about
 how Plan B pills work," said Brown. "However the fact is that the Church is
 very clear on this matter as is the manufacturer of Plan B, Duramed, which
 states that the pill can prevent implantation. This means that the pill
 could cause a chemical abortion."
     Paragraph 14 of Humane Vitae states, "the direct interruption of the
 generative process already begun and, above all, all direct abortion, even
 for therapeutic reasons, are to be absolutely excluded as lawful means of
 regulating the number of children ... Similarly excluded is any action
 which either before, at the moment of, or after sexual intercourse, is
 specifically intended to prevent procreation-whether as an end or as a
 means."
     "Pregnancy tests detect the presence of human chorionic gonadotrophin,
 which is only secreted after implantation," said Brown. "Because a
 pregnancy test won't tell you if fertilization has taken place prior to
 implantation, and Plan B prevents implantation after fertilization, the
 caveat for 'appropriate testing' in the CCC's statement is scientifically
 meaningless."
     "The Connecticut Catholic Conference is acting recklessly by allowing
 the use of this abortifacient," said Brown, "and we strongly encourage it
 to rethink its position."
 
 

SOURCE American Life League