Catholic Hospitals Up for Sale, Pro-Abortion ObamaCare Blamed for Decision
by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
October 11, 2010
Scranton, PA (LifeNews.com) — When Congress initially considered a government-run health care system that eventually became the abortion-funding ObamaCare health are plan, the nations Catholic bishops warned a government takeover of health care could result in closing Catholic hospitals.
At least one pro-life group argues that is now taking place in Scranton, Pennsylvania.
Late last week, Mercy Health Partners CEO Kevin Cook announced three Catholic hospitals in northeast Pennsylvania are now up for sale. Cook admitted that “health care reform is absolutely playing a role" and revealed Obama’s new health care law “absolutely” was a factor in the decision to sell the hospitals.
"Health care reform is absolutely playing a role. Was it the precipitating factor in this decision? No, but was it a factor in our planning over the next five years? Absolutely," Cook said.
Over the weekend, Catholic Health Association CEO Sister Carol Keehan, who drew national condemnation from pro-life Catholics for endorsing the pro-abortion ObamaCare bill and serving as the final catalyst for its passage and the capitulation from some pro-life Democrats, went into damage control mode.
CHA issued its own press release to try to water down Cook’s comments: "Reports that health reform is the primary motive behind the sale are completely false, misleading and politically motivated. Deliberations to sell the facilities began well" before passage of Obamacare.
Mercy CEO Cook then issued additional statements clarifying the decision.
"The rationale for our initiative has been mischaracterized by certain politicized media outlets and severely distorted by some special interest groups," he said.
Brian Burch, the president of CatholicVote, has responded to the controversy with a new radio blitz in northeast Pennsylvania to bring national attention what he calls a "growing scandal."
"There may be several reasons the hospitals are now up for sale, but Cook didn’t lie. The new federal healthcare law is definitely a factor," he said.
"During the health care debate, we opposed Obamacare because of the threat of taxpayers being forced to help fund abortion. But we also explained that a government takeover of healthcare would inevitably lead to higher costs, lower quality care, and impose big burdens on healthcare providers and hospitals," Burch added. "Looks like we were right."
Burch complained that the hospitals were founded by the Sisters of Mercy in 1917 and have served Pennsylvanians for generations — with one serving as the birthplace of Vice President Joe Biden.
Related web sites:
CatholicVote – https://www.CatholicVote.org
Sign Up for Free Pro-Life News From LifeNews.com
Daily Pro-Life News Report Twice-Weekly Pro-Life
News Report Receive a free daily email report from LifeNews.com with the latest pro-life news stories on abortion, euthanasia and stem cell research. Sign up here. Receive a free twice-weekly email report with the latest pro-life news headlines on abortion, euthanasia and stem cell research. Sign up here.
