Sec. 133. No government discrimination against certain health care entities
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/bill/114/s/2519/is/section-133A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.
A Federal agency or program, and any State or local government that receives Federal financial assistance under this Act or any amendment made by this Act (either directly or indirectly), may not subject any individual or institutional health care entity to discrimination on the basis that the health care entity does not provide, pay for, provide coverage of, or refer for abortions. For purposes of this section, the term health care entity includes an individual physician or other health care professional, a hospital, a provider-sponsored organization, a health maintenance organization, a health insurance plan, or any other kind of health care facility, organization, or plan.
The courts of the United States shall have jurisdiction to prevent and redress actual or threatened violations of this section by issuing any form of legal or equitable relief, including— injunctions prohibiting conduct that violates this section; and orders preventing the disbursement of all or a portion of Federal financial assistance to a State or local government, or to a specific offending agency or program of a State or local government, until such time as the conduct prohibited by this section has ceased.
An action under this subsection may be instituted by— any health care entity that has standing to complain of an actual or threatened violation of this section; or the Attorney General of the United States. The Secretary of Health and Human Services shall designate the Director of the Office for Civil Rights of the Department of Health and Human Services— to receive complaints alleging a violation of this section; subject to paragraph (3), to pursue the investigation of such complaints in coordination with the Attorney General; and in the case of a complaint related to a Federal agency (other than with respect to the Department of Health and Human Services) or program administered through such other agency or any State or local government receiving Federal financial assistance through such other agency, to refer the complaint to the appropriate office of such other agency.