this is ridiculous. does that mean that doctors cannot refuse any patients for procedures that they do (i.e., a woman can come in and have 50 plastic surgeries even if the doctor feels it is his moral duty to tell her enough is enough or a fertility doc will have to inseminate a poor single mom 20 times if that’s what she wants). why is it that in any situation we only consider the rights of the most liberal side? the conservative side is always left out. complete chaos is coming.

Of course Doctors have the right to choose their patients. Just as Ms. Benitez has the right to choose another Doctor.

I agree that the doctor can refuse that type of treatment. If it was a necessary procedure or treatment to alleviate a medical condition I would not agree. But this is about insemination and artificially creating a child and that is a voluntary procedure. It is no different than any other elective surgery nor is it any different than Pharmacists not being made to fill prescriptions for birth control pills when it is against their religious beliefs.

I am in absolute agreement with the doctor that chose not to do this. While the lesbian thinks that it is her “right” to get the treatment she WANTS, NOT NEEDS, then it is the doctors “right” to refuse her that treatment. I get sick of gays and lesbians thinking that their “rights” are more important than everyone elses. What about everyone elses rights? If they think that they are just like everyone else and this lesbian has a “normal” family than she should accept being treated just like a “normal” person. We Christians need to stand up to people like this and not let them bully the rest of the country around just because they choose a lifestyle that is not “normal.” I can tell you that there are more Christians in this country than there are homosexuals, so why are we letting them get away with everything and letting them change our laws? We need to stand up for everything that is good and pure, the way the God created it (family and marriage!) It starts with each individual Christian out there, don’t just sit and hope that the Christian next door does something about it. We need to be in prayer continually for this country and not just for ourselves but for those that are lost and need the Lord.

If Ms. Benitez is indeed part of a ‘normal family’ then she should come up with her own way to conceive!

Nevermind… I see the comments here mostly follow what I think too. This is a 100% OPTIONAL procedure. Thus, he can refuse to treat if so desires. She is free to shop around for another doctor.

Amen Robin! You said it better than anyone else could have!!!!!!!

Why is it that people think the government can tell private businesses how to operate? The only ‘businesses’ the government can control are government offices. You cannot tell one person to give up their rights in order to protect the rights of someone else. That’s not how it works. You tell the person that thinks their rights are being violated on a VOLUNTARY procedure, to go to a business that shares their outlook. Now, if the doc refused to help out in an emergency situation, there would be a problem, but still not a problem for the courts. The media would advertise that he didn’t help out in an emergency, and if his patients thought he was in the wrong, then he wouldn’t have anymore patients and would go broke. That’s the way this is all supposed to work. The courts are there for criminal violations, not because you got your feelings hurt. Toughen up a little bit and move on with your life. There are actual problems in this country that need attention.

I am in absolute agreement with the doctor that chose not to do this. While the lesbian thinks that it is her “right” to get the treatment she WANTS, NOT NEEDS, then it is the doctors “right” to refuse her that treatment. I get sick of gays and lesbians thinking that their “rights” are more important than everyone elses. What about everyone elses rights? If they think that they are just like everyone else and this lesbian has a “normal” family than she should accept being treated just like a “normal” person. We Christians need to stand up to people like this and not let them bully the rest of the country around just because they choose a lifestyle that is not “normal.” I can tell you that there are more Christians in this country than there are homosexuals, so why are we letting them get away with everything and letting them change our laws? We need to stand up for everything that is good and pure, the way the God created it (family and marriage!) It starts with each individual Christian out there, don’t just sit and hope that the Christian next door does something about it. We need to be in prayer continually for this country and not just for ourselves but for those that are lost and need the Lord.

Lisa, you made need to do a little research into your religion beofre you make a statement that bold. For one, rather than refer to this women by name, you call her “the lesbian.” That’s discriminitory. You can at least have the decency to speak of her as a person rather than “the lesbian.” Two, it’s not that she thinks the she is more important, she doesn’t want to be persecuted for her sexual orientation. If the doctor said, I am sorry, I need to give you a reference because my religion is against this procedure, then fine, but to say Oh, I can’t do this for a lesbian, then no, the doctor is wrong. And if you paid any attention to medical research, you would know that homosexuality is not a choice. They have actually found difference in brain function of straight and gay people. I’m sure at some point homosexuality will be considered a medical disorder. Who cares is there are more christians. If this were a religious battle, and gay was a religion, i could see the need for a christian uprising. And keeping everything pure such as marraige and family, the way god created it? God DID NOT create the concept of marraige. Man did. There is NOTHING IN THE BIBLE THAT IS AGAINST SINGLE PARENTS AND SEX BEFORE MARRAIGE. I think that you may just need to pray for yourself and the strength to remove your head from your rectum.

Did the doctor/doctors make a clear statement before the treatment began that they would not treat a homosexual patient?

If not, did they only refuse treatment once it was realized that she was a lesbian? Did they compensate her and her insurance company for the money they spent up to that point?

Those questions determine if it was discrimination.

@Robin
Oh, cute comment, are you also opposed to straight married couples using artificial insemination? Or are you just one more shortsighted hypocrite?

Would you also like the government to start protecting children from abnormal family situations? To many kids, only children, “alternative” lifestyles, lower class, fundamentalist beliefs, grandparents acting as parents, single dads, single moms?

Jo,

While I do understand your argument, I cannot agree with it. Guadalupe is a lesbian. She is ‘the lesbian’ in this case. That is fact. It’s not discrimination to state fact. To say “All lesbians are too gay for children” is discriminatory and unacceptable in the public forum. But please, don’t turn these comments into personal attacks against others for their opinions. Agree, disagree, whatever, but calling each other names is just a waste of time, and also has the ability to turn any valid point into a pile of doodoo. Broken’s comment is a great example. Great point up until the comment about Robin. Disagreement is great. It adds a deeper understanding and broader perception to discussions. Name calling is for the uneducated and misinformed.

This is insane. The doctor has EVERY right to deny her procedure. It’s is not medically necessary for her to have this done. How can you expect to get a procedure done that is not medically necessary. Yes, I know you can elect to have a cosmetic enhancment, but having a baby is not cosmetic. All this “my rights” bs has got to stop. Everything is getting so out of hand and if this continues it’s going to get worse. It’s sad that people feel the need to sue over petty situations. That doctor said no, she can go find another one who will say yes. I hope she is ready to pay out of her pocket cause health insurance will not pay for a claim that is not medically necessary. I wouldn’t be surprised if her insurance company overturns all of her paid claims and demands the money back from the provider. In which, I believe, they should. It’s not a medical situation it’s a personal choice.

Jo,
You are certainly entitled to your opinion as am I which is why this topic is even up for discussion. I am not going to stoop and start calling you names but I would like to point out a few things.
1. You are saying that I am persecuting someone because they are a lesbian (by the way, I called her “the lesbian” because I didn’t feel like typing her name wrongly, plus she is the only lesbian in this particular story.) BUT, then you go around and persecute me for being a Christian and voicing my opinion.
2. God did create marriage BETWEEN a man and a woman. Genesis 2:24 “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh.” God gave marriage as a GIFT to Adam and Eve and all men and women. Marriage was not for convenience, nor was it brought about by any culture. THAT IS THE TRUTH THROUGH GOD’S WORD. Now whether you CHOOSE to listen to God’s Word is up to you.
3. You can take any two people and say that they have different brain waves. Because not one of us are completely like another. This is just science and society again trying to say that something is okay and normal that is against God’s Word. God created us all as individuals but He did not create homosexuality. We are born into sin as humans but Christ died for every sin we have done including homosexuality.
4. The Bible does speak against sex before marriage. It is called sexual immorality. 1 Corinthians 6:12-20 speaks on this alone. I invite you to read it rather than quoting the entire passage. We are to honor God with our bodies.
Those are the things that you brought up in your discussion against what I said earlier so I just wanted to defend my beliefs and opinion on the matter and back it up with what the Lord says about it. The rest is my opinion so please do not persecute me for having mine.

Have a nice day, Jo!

Dear Christians, Have no fear , it is going to get much worse. The disturbing trends are becoming mainstream now. Remember no one is without sin and it is by grace we are saved. When I hear the cries against Christian morality, I remember that they hate us because they hated HIM first. We can’t stop the sin of others, however we certainly should not allow the world to force us to sin. I support these doctors decision and I have prayed that this woman can open her heart to GOD. There are far worse evils in this world though and we should never lose faith.

In our little home town of Bend, OR, a lesbian couple were turned down NINE times before they found an OB-GYN who would do an artificial insemination. It’s no wonder the couple, who want to be recognized as Mr. and Mrs./Mom & Dad, were turned down so many times. Sadly, a poor innocent child will be born this summer to the so-called “pregnant man” in Bend, OR. Remember Oprah giving her thumbs up recently to the pregnant “guy” on her show?

Lines have been blurred with all this “gay” marriage and prospective parent issues—wake up America, and fight the good fight and say “no” to the craziness!! The gays can’t procreate so they devise ways to mess with nature—it’s no wonder that the Benitez case surfaced.

I sympathize with her. I too had issues getting pregnant on my own and was able to finally conceive through IVF. I don’t think that your sexuality should matter, there are plenty of parents that are ‘male and female’ and don’t care a thing about their kids. I bet that this woman is going to be the best parent to this child that she can be. IVF is an emotionally and physically demanding thing to go through. If you haven’t been in our shoes, you probably won’t get it. My hats off to her and I wish her nothing but the best of luck, in court and with the IVF process. Keep strong.

I have no problem with doctors having their religous beliefs. When I cannot get medical treatment because of thier beliefs this becomes a problem, volutary or not. I believe in this situation these doctors were the only contracted providers. THe treated her for 11 months before they dumped her. In the first visit she was told that there were other docotrs that could perform the procedure. In the end that was a lie also. They had a contract that they signed to treat all patients and that contract was violated as well as the patients right under the Unruh civil rights.