Right of conscience for health care providers

(a) In general A health care provider may not be penalized, retaliated against, or otherwise discriminated against on the basis that the provider does not or declines to— (1) perform, refer for, pay for, or otherwise participate in sex-trait altering treatment; (2) provide or sponsor sex-trait altering treatment coverage; or (3) facilitate or make arrangements for sex-trait altering treatment. (b) State requirement (1) In general No specified Federal funds (as defined in paragraph (2)) may be made available to a State that requires a health care provider to provide sex-trait altering treatments. (2) Specified Federal funds defined For purposes of this subsection, the term specified Federal funds means any Federal funds made available under a program administered by the Department of Health and Human Services. (c) Civil action A health care provider who is harmed by a violation of subsection (a) may, in a civil action, obtain all appropriate relief, including injunctive relief, declaratory relief, and compensatory damages to prevent the occurrence, continuance, or repetition of such violation and to compensate for losses resulting from the violation. (d) Definition The term health care provider includes— (1) an individual physician, health care assistant, nurse, pharmacist, health researcher, or other health care personnel; (2) a hospital, laboratory, pharmacy, health system, or other health care or medical research facility or organization (including a party to a proposed merger or other collaborative arrangement relating to health services, and an entity resulting therefrom); (3) a provider-sponsored organization, an accountable care organization, or a health maintenance organization; (4) a social services provider that provides or authorizes referrals for health care services; (5) a program of training or education in the health professions or medical research, a participant in such a program, or any individual applying or otherwise aspiring to participate in such a program; (6) an issuer of health insurance coverage or of a health plan; (7) a health care sharing ministry; (8) a health insurance plan, including group, individual, or student health plans, or a sponsor or administrator thereof; and (9) any other health care organization, program, facility, or plan.