In Pennsylvania, hospitals that refuse to provide sexual-assault patients with emergency contraception due to stated moral or religious belief must submit that decision to the state department of health, so that Pennsylvanians have the information necessary to seek standard medical care in the wake of surviving sexual violence.
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the American Public Health Association recommend that emergency contraception be offered to all rape patients at risk of pregnancy. Some states have laws requiring hospitals to provide it. Pennsylvania is not one of those states.
According to the Pennsylvania Bulletin, fourteen Pennsylvania-based hospitals refuse to provide emergency contraception to rape victims:
Spirit Hospital – Camp Hill, 17011
Jersey Shore Hospital – Jersey Shore, 17740
Mercy Fitzgerald Hospital – Darby, 19023
Mercy Philadelphia Hospital – Philadelphia, 19143
Suburban Community Hospital – Norristown, 19401
Millcreek Community Hospital – Erie, 16509
Muncy Valley Hospital – Muncy, 17756
Nazareth Hospital – Philadelphia, 19152
Physicians Care Surgical Hospital – Royersford, 19468
Regional Hospital of Scranton – Scranton, 18501
St. Joseph Medical Center – Reading, 19603
St. Mary Medical Center – Langhorne, 19047
UPMC Mercy Hospital – Pittsburgh, 15219
Williamsport Regional Medical Center – Williamsport, 17701
Hospitals that refer rape victims to other facilities after providing life-saving treatment must also report this status to the department of health. Please review this list of hospitals here.
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