Poland’s Health Ministry has imposed a hefty fine on a medical facility for not complying with new abortion regulations arguing that because some doctors excessively invoke the conscience clause, women are repeatedly denied their legal right to undergo an abortion.
Polish Health Minister Izabela Leszczyna announced during a Monday press conference that a medical facility in Pabianice near Łódź has been fined due to non-compliance with new abortion regulations implemented by the left-liberal government.
The National Health Fund’s (NFZ) control department has been actively conducting audits related to abortion denials under the recently introduced regulation specifying the general conditions for refusal.
“On June 13, the audit at the Pabianice Medical Center was concluded, resulting in a penalty of 550,000 zlotys (approximately €125,000) levied against the provider,” Leszczyna stated. She also mentioned that the final stages of inspections concerning two additional entities are underway, and she fears penalties will also be justified there.
The amendment to the regulation on the general conditions of healthcare service contracts came into effect at the end of May. It mandates that hospitals organize their services so that at least one doctor is available to perform procedures that save the life or health of a woman. The Ministry of Health argued that because some doctors excessively invoke the conscience clause, women are repeatedly denied their legal right to undergo an abortion.
The government’s regulation has introduced a contractual penalty of up to 2 percent of the contract’s value for each verified violation of the new requirements. It also allows for partial or complete termination of contracts without notice in cases of non-compliance.
These changes follow the controversial 2020 Constitutional Court ruling that altered the longstanding abortion laws in Poland, which previously permitted abortions also in cases of severe and irreversible fetal impairment or incurable illness threatening the fetus’s life. Currently, there are four legislative proposals concerning abortion law in the parliament, introduced by various political groups including the Left, Civic Coalition and Third Way Alliance – PSL and Poland 2050.
