Arkansas Code of 1987 (2023) › Title 17 - PROFESSIONS, OCCUPATIONS, AND BUSINESSES (§§ 17-1-101 — 17-107-311) › Subtitle 3 - MEDICAL PROFESSIONS (§§ 17-80-101 — 17-107-311) › Chapter 80 - GENERAL PROVISIONS (§§ 17-80-101 — 17-80-506) › Subchapter 5 - MEDICAL ETHICS AND DIVERSITY ACT (§§ 17-80-501 — 17-80-506) › Section 17-80-504 - Right of conscience

(a)
A medical practitioner, healthcare institution, or healthcare payer:
(1)
Has the right not to participate in a healthcare service that violates his, her, or its conscience;
(2)
Is not required to participate in a healthcare service that violates his, her, or its conscience;
(3)
Is not civilly, criminally, or administratively liable for declining to participate in a healthcare service that violates his, her, or its conscience;
(4)
Is not civilly, criminally, or administratively liable for the exercise of conscience rights not to participate in a healthcare service by a medical practitioner employed, contracted, or granted admitting privileges by a healthcare institution; and
(5)
Shall not be discriminated against in any manner based upon his, her, or its declining to participate in a healthcare service that violates his, her, or its conscience.
(b)
Exercise of the right of conscience is limited to conscience-based objections to a particular healthcare service.
(c)
A medical practitioner, healthcare institution, or healthcare payer that holds himself, herself, or itself out to the public as religious, states in its governing documents that it has a religious purpose or mission, and has internal operating policies or procedures that implement its religious beliefs has the right to make employment, staffing, contracting, and admitting privilege decisions consistent with his, her, or its religious beliefs.
(d)
The right of conscience described in subsection (a) of this section does not include the right to deny emergency medical care as required under
42 U.S.C. § 1395dd
, as existing on January 1, 2021, or any other federal law governing emergency medical treatment, as existing on January 1, 2021.
(e)
(1)
When a medical practitioner declines to participate in a healthcare service for reasons of conscience, the medical practitioner shall alert the employing healthcare institution at the earliest reasonable time and comply with any applicable protocol developed under this section.
(2)
(A)
A healthcare institution may develop a protocol for situations in which a medical practitioner declines to participate in a healthcare service.
(B)
The protocol shall provide for prompt patient access to medical records to facilitate transfer, if needed.
(3)
This section does not require a healthcare institution or medical practitioner to perform a healthcare service, counsel, or refer a patient regarding a healthcare service that is contrary to the conscience of the medical practitioner or healthcare institution.
(f)
(1)
This section does not prohibit an employer or contracting healthcare institution from disclosing the specific healthcare services that an applicant would be required to participate in if he or she is hired for the position or contract.
(2)
Upon being informed of the specific healthcare services required of the position or contract, the applicant shall disclose whether he, she, or it has a conscience objection to any of those required duties.
(3)
However, a medical practitioner or healthcare institution shall be able to decline to participate in a healthcare service that violates his, her, or its conscience if the employer or contracting healthcare institution, after employment, adds healthcare services to a medical practitioner's or healthcare institution's duties that would require the medical practitioner or healthcare institution to provide services that violate his, her, or its conscience.
(g)
(1)
A healthcare payer shall file its conscience policies annually with the State Insurance Department by including a comprehensive list by billing code of any and all products, services, and procedures that the healthcare payer shall not pay or make payment for reasons of conscience.
(2)
The annual filing described in subdivision (g)(1) of this section shall:
(A)
Be provided annually to each beneficiary of the healthcare payer and on the website of the healthcare payer; and
(B)
Not be required for any year in which the healthcare payer will not exercise its conscience rights under this subchapter.
(h)
A healthcare payer shall not use a conscience objection to refuse or reduce payments to a healthcare provider, healthcare institution, or beneficiary for any product, service, or procedure that is not included in the annual filing required under subdivision (g)(1) of this section.
(i)
A healthcare payer shall not compel by undue influence, fraud, or duress a healthcare provider, healthcare institution, or beneficiary to accept a contract or contract amendment that violates the conscience of the healthcare provider, healthcare institution, or beneficiary.
(j)
The department may issue rules and take any other action necessary or appropriate to enforce subsections (g)-(i) of this section.
Added by Act 2021, No. 462,§ 1, eff. 7/28/2021.