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The U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) has proposed new changes to regulations meant to protect conscience rights in health care. Let HHS know that conscience matters to you! 
Numerous federal laws protect the right of organizations and people working in health care to object, as a matter of conscience, to abortion, sterilization, assisted suicide, gender transition surgery, and other procedures. The enforcement of these conscience objection laws are governed by HHS regulations.
HHS has proposed revisions to these regulations, known as the “Conscience Rule,” which implements over a dozen conscience statutes. Under the Trump administration, HHS issued a strong version of the Conscience Rule, but courts struck it down, leaving in place the previous, extremely weak version from the Obama administration. On January 5, 2023, HHS proposed a new version.  
The USCCB and the WCC support this new proposed rule as an improvement over the 2019 Rule which is currently in place, but also urges HHS to strengthen the proposed rule. Individuals are encouraged to contact HHS in support of strengthening the Conscience Rule using the button below. 
To learn more, read the USCCB’s published comments on the rule, Cardinal Dolan’s December 30 statement, and visit the USCCB’s “Do No Harm” webpage on these regulations at the links below.

Important Information from Bishop James P. Powers:
In October 2023 Pope Francis will be convening a Synod of the World’s Bishops to discuss the very notion of “Synodality”, with the three main themes being Communion, Participation and Mission. In preparation for the Synod there will be two prior phases. The first will happen at our local Diocesan level from this October until April 2022. During this time we are asked to pray and reflect with the entire people of God on the mission of the Church and how the Holy Spirit is moving to lead us—all of us—into a deeper sense of and commitment to Communion, Participation and Mission. Following this phase, our Diocese will submit a report on our process to the USCCB which will synthesize the reports of the entire country. This work will then be submitted to the Vatican in preparation for the gathering of the universal Church in 2023.