Florida Governor Ron DeSantis Approves Law Allowing Discrimination Against LGBTQ+ Individuals at Medical Level, Furthers Anti-Human Rights Agenda

The Governor of Florida, Ron DeSantis, has signed into law the "Protections of Medical Conscience Act," which permits healthcare providers and payors to refuse service based on their conscience-based objections, including ethical, moral, or religious beliefs. This includes medical professionals such as doctors, nurses, pharmacists, ambulance drivers, lab technicians, hospital administrators, and mental health professionals, among others. The law allows these entities to deny care and services, including medical tests, referrals, diagnoses, medications, therapy, research, and record-keeping. The bill fails to provide a clear definition of what constitutes a "moral" or "ethical" belief, raising concerns about how it will be enforced. Ron Desantis refused to acknowledge the details of how the bill specifically impacts LGBTQ individuals in his press event

The law's proponents argue that it aims to protect healthcare providers and payors from discrimination when providing conscience-based healthcare. However, many advocates fear that the law will be used to deny essential and potentially life-saving care to LGBTQ+ individuals, including gender-affirming care and medication for HIV prevention, among others. The new law raises serious concerns about discrimination and access to healthcare for vulnerable populations in Florida, especially now that is has been made fully legal with no questions asked to discriminate within the state.

For what its worth, the bill includes provisions that forbid the denial of healthcare services based on a patient's race, color, religion, sex, or national origin, meaning that Florida does not intend to discriminate on these basis’s at least yet. However, the law does not extend those protections to LGBTQ+ individuals based on their sexual orientation or gender identity. Additionally, the law allows healthcare employers to discriminate in their hiring practices and prevents medical boards from disciplining doctors for spreading false information. This provision can result in employers being forced to retain workers who refuse to perform their duties.

The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) has expressed concern over the potential impact of the law on vulnerable populations. The lack of protections based on sexual orientation or gender identity could potentially lead to the denial of essential healthcare services for LGBTQ+ individuals. The law's provisions could also contribute to the spread of false information and hinder the ability of medical boards to ensure patient safety.

This all ultimately flies in the face of traditional conservative values, which value personal liberty, as well as the sustainability of an individual's civil rights. Republicans are consistently exposing themselves not only as hypocrites, but individuals that fundamentally disagree with the notion of people they dislike having human rights. This paints a grim picture for the future within the state of Florida, as well as for the rest of the country, considering how few conservatives are hypocritically refusing to condemn Ron Desantis, nor even acknowledge that human rights are a good thing to have.