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Christian Fertility Doctors, Lesbian Settle Suit Over Treatment

After an eight-year court battle, two Christian fertility doctors who refused to inseminate a lesbian woman have privately settled their case for an undisclosed amount of money.

Guadalupe Benitez, 37, had sued Dr. Douglas Fenton and Dr. Christine Brody of the North Coast Women's Care Medical Group in Oceanside, Calif., for discrimination in 2001, recalling that her doctor had told her "right off the bat" that she would not perform insemination on her because her religious belief does not support same-sex relationships.

Despite the warning, Benitez continued to seek service from her doctor for insurance plan reasons and because her doctor had assured her that another physician at the clinic would perform the insemination.

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Nearly a year later of fertility drugs and other treatments, however, Benitez and her partner still could not find a doctor at the clinic willing to perform intrauterine insemination on Benitez. All the doctors at the clinic had declined due to religious reasons.

In the final ruling last year, the California Supreme Court said the doctors cannot use religion as reason for denying someone treatment. The state law that prohibits sexual orientation discrimination includes medical professionals, it ruled.

Following the settlement 13 months later, the North Coast Women's Care Medical Group and Benitez and her partner, Joanne Clark, released an amicable joint statement. The doctors expressed sincere apology for making the couple feel they were being treated differently because of their sexual orientation. The medical group also stated that it seeks to provide all patients, including lesbian and gay clients, with treatment and equal dignity.

Benitez's attorney, Jennifer Pizer, said that the statement was encouraging.

"It shows a journey that our whole society is taking together, away from intolerance and towards inclusion," she said, according to The Associated Press.

The case stands as a precedent for other similar conflicts anticipated in other states. It also adds to a growing list of cases where medical professionals are forced to choose between their religious or moral beliefs and the law.

In recent years, Christian pharmacists have struggled with providing emergency contraceptives, and doctors with performing abortions.

Pharmacists have protested against being forced to stock and distribute drugs such as Plan B, or the "morning-after pill," in their store as they some liken the pill's usage to abortion. Plan B is taken after unprotected sex to prevent pregnancy and blocks a fertilized egg from attaching itself to a woman's uterus.

Last month, the Christian Medical Association sent a letter to President Obama notifying him that over 10,000 health care professionals and individuals had signed a petition urging him and Congress to protect conscience rights and to bar abortion mandates in health care reform legislation.

Signers of the petition took issue with a House bill amendment that they say would publicly fund abortions and also called for the removal of an amendment in the Senate's health care reform bill that they say would require physicians to perform or refer abortions.

"Our polling demonstrates that the American people by two-to-one margins support conscience-protecting laws and the conscience-protecting regulation that President Obama plans to get rid of," said CMA CEO Dr. David Stevens.

"It's time that the President and Congress get in step with the American people, stop trying to mandate and publicly fund abortions, and start protecting the conscience rights that are key to protecting access to healthcare for millions of poor patients," added CMA senior vice president Gene Rudd.

According to CMA's national survey, 95 percent of faith-based physicians say that they would rather stop practicing medicine than be forced to violate their conscience.

The Christian Medical & Dental Associations currently has a membership of more than 15,000 health care professionals, according to the group's website.

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