Scranton Bishops Urge Sen. Casey To Oppose Any Health Care
Bills That Include Abortion Coverage

Scranton Bishop Joseph F. Martino and Auxiliary Bishop John M. Dougherty mailed the following letter on July 22 to Sen. Bob Casey:

                                                                              July 22, 2009

The Honorable Robert P. Casey, Jr.

United States Senator

383 Russell State Office Building

Washington, D.C. 20510

Dear Senator Casey,

The bill approved on July 15 by the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee sponsored by Senator Ted Kennedy is a matter of deep concern to us. According to National Right to Life Committee Legislative Director, Douglas Johnson, "The Kennedy bill [and the House Democratic leadership bill] would result in the greatest expansion of abortion since Roe v. Wade." Further, Johnson stated, "These bills, which President Obama is pushing hard, would result in federally mandated coverage of abortion by nearly all health plans, federally mandated recruitment of abortionists by local health networks, and nullification of many state abortion laws. They would also result in federal funding of abortion on a massive scale.”

Church teaching is clear regarding the responsibility of a civil society to uphold the sanctity of human life. In its instruction of 1987, entitled Respect for Human Life (Donum Vitae), the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith noted: 

          “The inalienable rights of the person must be recognized and respected by civil society and the political authority. These human rights depend neither on single individuals nor on parents; nor do they represent a concession made by society and the state; they belong to human nature and are inherent in the person by virtue of the creative act from which the person took his origin. Among such fundamental rights one should mention in this regard every human being’s right to life and physical integrity from the moment of conception until death.”

          “The moment a positive law deprives a category of human beings of the protection which civil legislation ought to accord them, the state is denying the equality of all before the law. When the state does not place its power at the service of the rights of each citizen, and in particular of the more vulnerable, the very foundations of a state based on law are undermined …” 

In the coming days, you will have the opportunity to vote on the Kennedy bill in its final version. We urge you to oppose this bill and any legislation that permits the destruction of innocent human life. Senator, consider the words of your late father as he addressed the

Democratic party telling them “…to move away from a lock-step litmus test which advocates abortion on demand in an effort to reach a broader national consensus.”

Finally, trusting in your willingness to uphold the right to life, we entreat you to make every possible effort to defeat any other so called health care legislation which allows the destruction of unborn human life.

With kind personal regards and every good wish, we are, 

                                                Sincerely yours in Our Lord, 

 Most Reverend Joseph F. Martino, D.D., Hist. E.D.
                    Bishop of Scranton 

 Most Reverend John M. Dougherty, D.D., V.G.
             Auxiliary Bishop of Scranton