All News
Nova Scotia only faith-based hospital to end religious sponsorship
St. Martha’s Regional Hospital in Antigonish, Nova Scotia, will lose its formal Catholic sponsorship when its Mission Assurance Agreement ends on September 30, 2026. The agreement, created in 1996 between the hospital, Nova Scotia Health, and the provincial government, protected the hospital’s Catholic philosophy, mission, and values. It was the only publicly funded hospital in Nova Scotia operating under this kind of arrangement. The article connects the decision to longer-running controversy over services affected by the hospital’s faith-based identity, including abortion and MAID. Nova Scotia’s health minister said the province wants hospitals to operate with the same services, policies, and procedures, while others quoted in the piece disagreed over whether a publicly funded hospital should be able to limit care on religious grounds.
By: Rebecca Lau & Ella Macdonald
Catholic doctors urge pursuit of medicine with faith, courage
A Vancouver panel discussion organized to encourage young Catholics considering careers in medicine and related health professions. Organized by Dr. Christopher Ryan, the event brought together Catholic professionals from medicine, nursing, pharmacy, and other specialties to answer questions about training, vocation, and the challenges of entering a health-care environment they describe as increasingly shaped by ideological pressures. The piece centres on Ryan’s view that Catholic students should not be discouraged from pursuing medicine despite those pressures. He argues that religious conviction remains valuable in clinical practice, especially where patients want care that takes religion and spirituality seriously.
By: Nicholas Elberts
Honouring the History and Impact of Catholic Healthcare: UIW Hosts 2026 Pierre Lecture
A February 2026 lecture at the University of the Incarnate Word by Sr. Teresa “Tere” Maya of the Catholic Health Association, titled “Care for All: What Does ‘Catholic’ Mean in Healthcare?” It presents Catholic healthcare as rooted in the healing ministry of Jesus and shaped by health equity, Catholic Social Teaching, mercy, dignity, and whole-person care. The piece emphasizes the historical role of Catholic institutions in serving vulnerable and marginalized communities and argues that Catholic healthcare should continue to adapt to changing needs while remaining faithful to its mission.
By: University of the Incarnate Word
TN Hospital Denies Woman Sterilization Surgery, Citing Her “Sacred Fertility”
A Tennessee woman says Ascension Saint Thomas Hospital Midtown cancelled her scheduled sterilization procedure while she was already undergoing pre-surgery preparation, after the hospital’s Catholic Ethics Oversight Committee intervened. The piece links the incident to Tennessee’s Medical Ethics Defence Act, which allows providers and medical centers to refuse procedures that conflict with their moral beliefs. It presents the case as an example of how religiously based hospital governance can shape access to contraception-related care, especially in a state with highly restrictive abortion laws.
By: Chris Walker
Letters: Remembering Catholic Health-care Pioneers
This article is a short letter to the editor responding to The B.C. Catholic’s recent coverage of the history of Catholic healthcare in Canada. Marianne Nederend recalls that her grandmother worked in 1929 with the Sisters of Service at a small hospital in Edson, Alberta, where she did physically demanding laundry work. The letter uses this family connection to express gratitude toward the women and men who helped build Catholic health services in Canada. It serves as a personal reflection on the historical foundations of Catholic healthcare.
By: Letters To The Editor (B.C. Catholic)
Accommodating Catholic health care presence and conscience
This article illustrates how Catholic healthcare has long been part of Canada’s publicly funded health system and that its continued presence depends on preserving space for institutional and individual conscience. The piece also claims that newer federal standards are increasing pressure on healthcare workers by expecting them to raise euthanasia with eligible patients and, in some cases, make effective referrals. It presents these developments as part of a broader shift from accommodation toward coercion in matters of conscience.
By: The B.C. Catholic
Exploring Canada’s living tradition of Catholic health care
This article provides an overview of the historical and ongoing tradition of Catholic health care in Canada. It begins by connecting current events, including a legal challenge involving Catholic hospitals in British Columbia, with the deep roots of Catholic healing ministry dating back to early figures such as St. Marguerite Bourgeoys. The article traces how Catholic individuals and religious congregations first established health services long before public systems existed, often providing care in frontier communities and to vulnerable populations. It then explains how these ministries evolved into formal institutions such as hospitals, nursing schools, and care facilities that later operated within publicly funded systems while maintaining a faith-based mission.
By: The B.C. Catholic
Growing Market Power Among Catholic Hospitals Restrains Access to Reproductive Health Care
The article describes how the growing consolidation of Catholic health systems in the U.S. is affecting access to reproductive health services. It reports that Catholic hospitals now comprise a significant share of hospital beds and systems, and because they follow the Ethical and Religious Directives (which limit or forbid services like abortion, many contraceptive methods, fertility treatments, and certain miscarriage management options), their market power means fewer alternative providers are available in many communities. The piece argues that this creates access barriers for patients, especially in states where Catholic hospitals are the primary or only option.
By: Bailey Sanders, Barak Richman, Kierra B. Jones, Andrea Ducas, Samuel Doernberg
Ascension Health investments appear to reject Vatican guidance
A report by National Nurses United (NNU) claims that Ascension Health’s investments—in its Master Pension Trust—include hundreds of millions of dollars in industries that conflict with the Vatican’s 2022 guidance Mensuram Bonam: Faith-Based Measures for Catholic Investors. These holdings cover weapons manufacturers, alcohol, gambling, tobacco, mining, fossil fuels, environmental-harmful banks, and exploitative labor sectors. NNU urges Ascension to increase transparency, publish its investment criteria, divest from problematic sectors, and release lists of holdings and divestments.
By: National Nurses Organizing Committee
Catholic nursing students live faith on hospital ship in Madagascar
Three nursing students from Belmont Abbey College in North Carolina spent two weeks aboard a Mercy Ships hospital ship in Madagascar as part of an internship. Mercy Ships delivers free surgical care in areas with very limited medical access. The students describe being transformed by the experience through serving patients in a “medical desert,” working alongside volunteers, and living out their faith through acts of compassion, service, and community.
By: Kate Quiñones
Ascension Saint Agnes nurses to protest Catholic hospital chain’s unfaithful financial investments
Bishop Pius Moon Chang-woo and representatives of several Catholic organizations in South Korea formally opposed proposed revisions to the Maternal and Child Health Act. The amendments would allow broader access to abortion pills, revise language to neutralize abortion, and include abortion services under national health insurance. The Catholic leaders argued the changes would devalue fetal life and marginalize the balance between a woman’s rights and the fetus’s right to life; they pledged to revitalize a national pro-life movement to uphold ethical standards and support pregnant women through Catholic health networks
By: National Nurses Organizing Committee
Study: Hospitals acquired by Catholic health systems unlikely to eliminate obstetrics
A national study compared over 700 first-time hospital acquisitions between 2009 and 2022 to see how operations change when hospitals are acquired by Catholic vs. non-Catholic systems. The study found that Catholic-system acquisitions are less likely than non-Catholic ones to eliminate obstetrics (labor and delivery) units. Catholic-owned systems also tend to preserve or expand mission-oriented services such as charity care and chaplaincy.
By: Amanda Brewster, Hector Rodriquez, Becky Staiger
Catholic doctor describes her journey to practicing faith and medicine in harmony
Dr. Carolyn Manhart, an internal medicine physician in Omaha, reflects on how her Catholic faith deeply shapes her medical vocation. Her early experiences caring for the ill and a transformative encounter during her formation, reading Humanae Vitae and training at the Pope Paul VI Institute, helped her embrace the Church’s ethical teachings. As a practicing physician, she integrates faith into her care by fostering dignity and spiritual reflection among elderly patients.
By: Charlie Camosy
Ministry systems find CHA’s online platform to be vital tool for gauging fidelity to Catholic health mission
The Catholic Health Association (CHA) has introduced an online Ministry Identity Assessment platform that assists Catholic health systems in evaluating their adherence to the seven core commitments of Catholic health care. This tool enables facilities to assess their policies, practices, and community partnerships, guiding them through a comprehensive self-assessment process.
By: Julie Mind
New hospital resulting from St. Mary's–Grand River merger won't be Catholic
The upcoming merger between St. Mary's General Hospital and Grand River Hospital in Kitchener will result in a new, secular hospital. This marks a departure from St. Mary's long-standing Catholic affiliation. The new governance structure will feature a secular board of directors. Community reactions are mixed, with some expressing concerns over the loss of Catholic values, while others view the change as a positive step towards broader inclusivity. The new hospital is slated to open in 2026, aiming to provide expanded services and meet the growing healthcare demands of the region.
By: Record Staff
Through Faithfully Forward initiative, CHA works to build student awareness of roles in ethics and mission
CHA has relaunched its Faithfully Forward initiative to address workforce shortages in ethics, mission, and pastoral care by partnering with Catholic universities to promote these roles among students. The effort builds on earlier research identifying barriers like limited internships and low pay, aiming to influence curricula and expand formation opportunities.
By: Julie Minda
Impicciche: Even amid adversity, mission of Catholic health care is as vital as ever
In his reflection as outgoing CHA Board Chair, Impicciche emphasizes Catholic health care’s enduring mission amid systemic challenges like workforce shortages and policy shifts. He highlights the sector’s unity, its moral voice in public policy, and the need for innovative, community-rooted care grounded in dignity and compassion.
By: Joe Impicche
Ethicist makes case for conscientious objection by Catholic health care providers
Ethicist Xavier Symons argues that allowing conscientious objection in Catholic healthcare respects providers’ dignity and helps prevent moral distress. Speaking during a CHA‑hosted webinar, Symons emphasized how conscience connects general moral principles with individual clinical decisions. He noted objections aren’t limited to abortion or euthanasia but may extend to other procedures deemed manifestly unethical. Symons asserts that enforcing a strict separation between personal and professional values is unrealistic and potentially harmful, and he advocates recognizing conscientious objection as morally commendable rather than a professional hindrance.
By: Lisa Eisenhauer
Tell Providence That Sponsoring the Iditarod Does Not Reflect Catholic Values
The PETA action alert condemns Providence Alaska Medical Center’s sponsorship of the Iditarod sled dog race, labeling it inconsistent with Catholic values of compassion. It reports that during the 2025 race, a pregnant dog named Ventana collapsed and died after running over 300 miles, and more than 180 dogs were pulled from the event due to injuries, illness, or exhaustion. PETA criticizes Providence for supporting this event and urges the healthcare provider to end its financial ties with the race
By: PETA
Virginia Mason Franciscan invests in nonprofit that educates, empowers minority youth
Virginia Mason Franciscan Health has partnered with Build 2 Lead, a nonprofit in northwest Washington state, to support minority youth through education and empowerment initiatives. The collaboration aims to expose young people to various career paths, including those in health care, fostering diversity and inclusion within the industry. By investing in community-based programs, the health system demonstrates a commitment to addressing social determinants of health and promoting equity.
By: Julie Minda