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1 STATE OF OKLAHOMA
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2 2nd Session of the 60th Legislature (2026)
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3 SENATE BILL 1798 By: Jett
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6 AS INTRODUCED
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7 An Act relating to freedom of conscience; creating
7 the Medical Ethics Defense Act; providing short
8 title; defining terms; granting certain rights to
8 certain medical practitioners, health care
9 institutions, or health care payers; limiting
9 exercise of certain rights; granting certain
10 immunities; prohibiting certain discrimination;
10 requiring opt-in for abortion; providing certain
11 construction; prohibiting and requiring certain
11 actions by licensing board under certain conditions;
12 authorizing and prohibiting certain civil actions;
12 prohibiting certain defense; providing for recovery
13 of damages and other relief; providing for
13 codification; and providing an effective date.
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16 BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
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17 SECTION 1. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
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18 in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 1-728g of Title 63, unless there
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19 is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:
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20 This act may be known and cited as the "Medical Ethics Defense
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21 Act".
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22 SECTION 2. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
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23 in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 1-728h of Title 63, unless there
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24 is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:
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1 1. "Conscience" means the ethical, moral, or religious beliefs
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2 or principles held by any medical practitioner, health care
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3 institution, or health care payer. Conscience with respect to
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4 institutional entities or corporate bodies, as opposed to individual
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5 persons, is determined by reference to that entity's or body's
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6 governing documents including, but not limited to, any published
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7 ethical, moral, or religious guidelines or directives; mission
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8 statements; constitutions; articles of incorporation; bylaws;
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9 policies; or regulations;
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10 2. "Disclosure" means a formal or informal communication or
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11 transmission, but does not include a communication or transmission
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12 concerning policy decisions that lawfully exercise discretionary
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13 authority unless the medical practitioner providing the disclosure
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14 or transmission reasonably believes that the disclosure or
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15 transmission evinces:
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16 a. any violation of any law, rule, or regulation,
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17 b. any violation of any ethical guidelines for the
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18 provision of any medical procedure or service, or
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19 c. gross mismanagement, a gross waste of funds, an abuse
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20 of authority, practices or methods of treatment that
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21 may put patient health at risk, or a substantial and
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22 specific danger to public health or safety;
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23 3. "Discrimination" means any adverse action taken against, or
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24 any threat of adverse action communicated to, any medical
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1 practitioner, health care institution, or health care payer as a
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2 result of his, her, or its decision to decline to participate in a
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3 medical procedure or service on the basis of conscience.
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4 Discrimination includes, but is not limited to:
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5 a. termination of employment,
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6 b. transfer from current position,
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7 c. demotion from current position,
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8 d. adverse administrative action,
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9 e. reassignment to a different shift or job title,
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10 f. increased administrative duties,
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11 g. refusal of staff privileges,
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12 h. refusal of board certification,
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13 i. loss of career specialty,
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14 j. reduction of wages, benefits, or privileges,
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15 k. refusal to award a grant, contract, or other program,
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16 l. refusal to provide residency training opportunities,
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17 m. denial, deprivation, or disqualification of licensure,
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18 n. withholding or disqualifying from financial aid and
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19 other assistance,
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20 o. impediments to creating any health care institution or
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21 payer or expanding or improving such health care
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22 institution or payer,
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23 p. impediments to acquiring, associating with, or merging
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24 with any other health care institution or payer,
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1 q. the threat thereof with regard to any of the
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2 preceding, or
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3 r. any other penalty, disciplinary, or retaliatory
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4 action, whether executed or threatened.
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5 However, discrimination excludes the negotiation or purchase of
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6 insurance by a nongovernment entity;
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7 4. "Medical procedure or service" means medical care provided
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8 to any patient at any time over the entire course of treatment, or
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9 medical research. The term includes, but is not limited to,
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10 testing; diagnosis; referral; dispensing or administering any drug,
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11 medication, or device; psychological therapy or counseling;
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12 research; prognosis; therapy; record-making procedures; notes
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13 related to treatment; set up or performance of a surgery or
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14 procedure; or any other care or service performed or provided by any
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15 medical practitioner including, but not limited to, physicians,
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16 nurses, allied health professionals, paraprofessionals, contractors,
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17 or employees of health care institutions;
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18 5. "Health care institution" means any organization,
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19 corporation, partnership, association, agency, network, sole
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20 proprietorship, joint venture, or other entity that provides medical
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21 procedures or services. The term includes, but is not limited to,
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22 any public or private hospital, clinic, medical center, physician
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23 organization, professional association, ambulatory surgical center,
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24 private physician's office, pharmacy, nursing home, medical school,
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1 nursing school, medical training facility, or any other entity or
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2 location in which medical procedures or services are performed;
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3 6. "Health care payer" means any employer, health plan, health
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4 maintenance organization, insurance company, management services
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5 organization, or any other entity that pays for, or arranges for the
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6 payment of, any medical procedure or service provided to any
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7 patient, whether that payment is made in whole or in part;
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8 7. "Medical practitioner" means any person or individual who
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9 may be or is asked to participate in any way in any medical
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10 procedure or service. The term includes, but is not limited to,
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11 doctors, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, nurses, nurse
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12 aides, allied health professionals, medical assistants, hospital
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13 employees, clinic employees, nursing home employees, pharmacists,
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14 pharmacy technicians and employees, medical school faculty and
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15 students, nursing school faculty and students, psychology and
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16 counseling faculty and students, medical researchers, laboratory
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17 technicians, psychologists, psychiatrists, counselors, mental health
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18 professionals, social workers, or any other person who facilitates
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19 or participates in the provision of a medical procedure or service;
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20 8. "Participate" means to provide, perform, assist with,
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21 facilitate, refer for, counsel for, advise with regard to, admit for
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22 the purposes of providing, or take part in any way in providing any
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23 medical procedure or service, or any form of such service; and
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1 9. "Pay" or "payment" means to pay for, contract for, arrange
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2 for the payment of, whether in whole or in part, reimburse, or
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3 remunerate.
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4 SECTION 3. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
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5 in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 1-728i of Title 63, unless there
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6 is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:
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7 A. Freedom of Conscience. A medical practitioner, health care
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8 institution, or health care payer has the right not to participate
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9 in or pay for any medical procedure or service which violates his,
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10 her, or its conscience.
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11 B. Limitations. The exercise of the right of conscience is
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12 limited to conscience-based objections to a particular medical
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13 procedure or service. This section shall not be construed to waive
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14 or modify any duty a health care practitioner, health care
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15 institution, or health care payer may have to provide other medical
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16 procedures or services that do not violate the practitioner's,
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17 institution's, or payer's conscience.
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18 C. Immunity from Liability. No medical practitioner, health
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19 care institution, or health care payer shall be civilly, criminally,
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20 or administratively liable for exercising his, her, or its right of
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21 conscience not to participate in or pay for a medical procedure or
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22 service. No health care institution shall be civilly, criminally,
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23 or administratively liable for the exercise of conscience rights not
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24 to participate in a medical procedure or service by a medical
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1 practitioner employed, contracted, or granted admitting privileges
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2 by the health care institution.
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3 D. Discrimination. No medical practitioner, health care
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4 institution, or health care payer shall be discriminated against in
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5 any manner as a result of his, her, or its decision to decline to
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6 participate in or pay for a medical procedure or service on the
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7 basis of conscience.
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8 E. Exception. Notwithstanding any other provision of this act
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9 to the contrary, a religious medical practitioner, health care
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10 institution, or health care payer that holds itself out to the
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11 public as religious, states in its governing documents that it has a
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12 religious purpose or mission, and has internal operating policies or
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13 procedures that implement its religious beliefs shall have the right
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14 to make employment, staffing, contracting, and admitting privilege
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15 decisions consistent with its religious beliefs.
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16 F. Opt-In Required. A health care practitioner may not be
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17 scheduled for, assigned, or requested to directly or indirectly
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18 perform, facilitate, refer for, or participate in an abortion unless
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19 the practitioner first affirmatively consents in writing to perform,
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20 facilitate, refer for, or participate in the abortion. This
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21 subsection does not establish a right to participate in an abortion
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22 otherwise prohibited by law.
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23 G. Emergency Medical Treatments. Nothing in this act shall be
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24 construed to override the requirement to provide emergency medical
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1 treatment to all patients set forth in 42 U.S.C., Section 1395dd.
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2 Medical emergencies shall be subject to the definitions and
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3 requirements of Section 1-731.4 of Title 63 of the Oklahoma
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4 Statutes.
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5 SECTION 4. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
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6 in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 1-728j of Title 63, unless there
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7 is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:
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8 A. No medical practitioner shall be discriminated against in
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9 any manner because the medical practitioner:
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10 1. Provided, caused to be provided, or is about to provide or
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11 cause to be provided to his or her employer, the Attorney General,
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12 any state agency charged with protecting health care rights of
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13 conscience, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the
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14 Office for Civil Rights, or any other federal agency charged with
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15 protecting health care rights of conscience information relating to
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16 any violation of, or any act or omission the medical practitioner
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17 reasonably believes to be a violation of, any provision of this act;
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18 2. Testified or is about to testify in a proceeding concerning
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19 such violation; or
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20 3. Assisted or participated, or is about to assist or
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21 participate, in such a proceeding.
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22 B. Unless the disclosure is specifically prohibited by law, no
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23 medical practitioner shall be discriminated against in any manner
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1 because the medical practitioner disclosed any information that the
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2 medical practitioner reasonably believes evinces:
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3 1. Any violation of any law, rule, or regulation;
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4 2. Any violation of any ethical guidelines for the provision of
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5 any medical procedure or service; or
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6 3. Gross mismanagement, a gross waste of funds, an abuse of
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7 authority, practices or methods of treatment that may put patient
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8 health at risk, or a substantial and specific danger to public
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9 health or safety.
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10 C. A licensing board may not reprimand, sanction, or revoke or
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11 threaten to revoke a license, certificate, or registration of a
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12 health care practitioner for engaging in speech or expressive
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13 activity protected under the First Amendment to the United States
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14 Constitution, unless the licensing board demonstrates beyond a
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15 reasonable doubt that the practitioner's speech was the direct cause
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16 of physical harm to a person with whom the health care practitioner
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17 had a practitioner-patient relationship within the three (3) years
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18 immediately preceding the incident of physical harm.
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19 1. The licensing board shall provide a medical practitioner
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20 with any complaints it has received which may result in the
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21 revocation of the medical practitioner's license, certification, or
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22 registration, within seven (7) days after receipt of the complaint.
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23 2. The licensing board shall pay the medical practitioner an
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24 administrative penalty of Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00) for each
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1 day the complaint is not provided to the medical practitioner after
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2 the specified seven (7) days.
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3 SECTION 5. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
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4 in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 1-728k of Title 63, unless there
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5 is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:
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6 A. Civil Action for Violation of Right of Conscience. A civil
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7 action for damages or injunctive relief, or both, may be brought by
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8 any medical practitioner, health care institution, or health care
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9 payer for any violation of any provision of this act. Any
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10 additional burden or expense on another medical practitioner, health
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11 care institution, or health care payer arising from the exercise of
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12 the right of conscience shall not be a defense to any violation of
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13 this act. However, no civil action may be brought against an
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14 individual who declines to use or purchase medical procedures or
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15 services from a specific medical practitioner, health care
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16 institution, or health care payer for exercising the rights granted
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17 in subsection A of Section 3 of this act.
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18 B. Other Remedies. Any party aggrieved by any violation of
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19 this act may commence a civil action and shall be entitled, upon the
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20 finding of a violation, to recover treble damages sustained, along
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21 with the costs of the action and reasonable attorney fees. Such
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22 damages shall be cumulative and in no way limited by any other
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23 remedies which may be available under any other federal, state, or
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24 municipal law. A court considering such civil action may also award
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1 injunctive relief, which may include, but is not limited to,
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2 reinstatement of a medical practitioner to his or her previous
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3 position, reinstatement of board certification, and relicensure of a
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4 health care institution or health care payer.
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5 SECTION 6. This act shall become effective November 1, 2026.
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Req. No. 3539 Page 11Every fact on this page links to its source, starting with the official bill record.