Religious Exemptions

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It is vital that the healthcare professionals to be sensitive to patients’ cultural and spiritual beliefs as well as knowing the law when it involves children health. It is important to find right approach and build a trusting relationship with a child and his/her parents by ethically initiating communication and explanation of the best possible choices for the patient. No doubt parents’ decision-making rights should be recognized and taken into account, but the medical personnel should not ignore any suspected cases of medical neglect or abuse. Sometimes the state authorities have to get involved in order for children to get treated. Right to practice any religion is very respected in this country. Some parents refuse medical treatment based on their religious and spiritual beliefs, but when it comes to treatment that might prevent death or severe impairment or alleviate excruciating pain, children’s health and future autonomy should be defended. Because religious exemptions to child abuse and neglect laws do not equally protect all children and may harm some children, these exemptions should be repealed. …show more content…

These exemptions appeared as reaction to the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act of 1974. The act stated, “Provided, however, that a parent or guardian legitimately practicing his religious beliefs who thereby does not provide specified medical treatment for a child, for that reason alone shall not be considered a negligent parent or guardian” (Child Abuse, 1975). Application of exemptions was a method used by the states to collect federal child abuse grants. More than 40 states adopted exemptions, it slightly differs in where they can be found within each state’s code and sentence formulation (Malecha, 1985). Some of the exemption involve child protective services agencies’ ability to intervene, and others reflect parents’ criminal

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