(from Consumer Health Digest newsletter)
Christian
Science declining. (#09-51
December 17, 2009)
Participation and membership in the Christian Science Church has
been declining steadily for many years:
**Between 1971 and 2009 the number of U.S. practitioners and teachers
listed in the Christian Science Journal fell from about 5,000
to about 1,160.
**The number of churches fell from about 1,800 to about 900.
**The current number of Christian Science "nurses" in
the United States is only 20.
**Subscriptions to the Christian Science Sentinel fell from about
175,000 in 1988 to 24,130 in 2009.
**The church does not disclose how many members it has, but the
current subscription figure suggests there are fewer than 50,000
members worldwide.
Christian Science contends that illness is an illusion caused
by faulty beliefs, and that prayer heals by replacing bad thoughts
with good ones. Christian Science practitioners work by trying
to argue the sick thoughts out of the patient's mind. Consultations
can take place in person, by telephone, or even by mail.
Individuals may also be able to attain correct beliefs by themselves
through prayer or concentration. The steady membership decline
is not surprising because the church's doctrines have little appeal
to modern youth. [Barrett S. The origin and current status
of Christian Science. Quackwatch, Dec 18, 2009]
http://www.quackwatch.org/01QuackeryRelatedTopics/cs2.html
The church's efforts to include coverage of services by practitioners
in proposed health care reform bills have been thwarted so far,
but lobbying to gain inclusion continues.
Narconon
deaths under investigation. (#12-29
August 23, 2012)
The Pittsburgh County (Oklahoma) Sheriff and state Mental Health
and Substance Abuse are investigating four deaths that occurred
at the Arrowhead Narconon facility in Eastern Oklahoma. Narconon,
which is the Church of Scientology's drug rehabilitation program,
features sauna treatments and high doses of niacin that are claimed
to release drug residues from fatty tissues. The Tampa Bay Times
has reported that in 2010, there were 53 Narconon centers worldwide.
[Childs J, Tobin TC. Deaths at Scientology drug treatment program
Narconon bring investigation. Tampa Bay Times, Aug 16, 2012] http://www.tampabay.com/news/scientology/deaths-at-scientology-drug-treatment-program-narconon-bring-investigation/1246054
Convictions
in faith healing death upheld. (#13-26
July 4, 2013)
The Wisconsin Supreme Court has upheld the convictions of Dale
and Leilani Neumann and ruled that Wisconsin's religious defense
to felony child abuse does not bar a homicide charge. Both were
convicted of second-degree reckless homicide and were later sentenced
to serve 30 days in jail per year for six years and ten years
of probation. Testimony at their trials indicated that their 11-year-old
daughter Madeline died of undiagnosed diabetes because instead
of seeking medical help they prayed at her bedside, even after
she had lapsed into a coma. The full text of the appeal court's
ruling has been posted to Casewatch (link).
Christian
Science Church still declining (#16-09
March 13, 2016)
Data from the Christian Science Church's online
directory indicate that membership in the Christian Science
Church has continued to decline. [Barrett S. Christian
Science statistics: Practitioners, teachers, nurses, and churches
in the United States. Quackwatch, March 13, 2016] Since
1971, the number of practitioners and teachers has dropped from
4,965 to 942, a decrease of about 5% per year; and the number
of churches has dropped from 1,829 to 778, a decrease of about
2% per year. Christian Science contends that illness is an illusion
caused by faulty beliefs and that prayer heals by replacing bad
thoughts with good ones. Christian Science practitioners work
by trying to argue the sick thoughts out of the patient's mind.
Consultations can take place in person, by telephone, or even
by mail. Individuals may also be able to attain correct beliefs
by themselves through prayer or concentration. There is no scientific
evidence that Christian Science methods influence the course of
any disease. The steady membership decline is not surprising because
the church's doctrines have little appeal to modern youth.
Slate blasts faith-based
treatment facility (#16-20
May 29, 2016)
Slate has published a detailed investigative report that features
interviews of women treated at a facility operated by Mercy Ministries.
The article states that (a) the company does not require that
its counselors be licensed, (b) its counselors are not permitted
to provide psychotherapy, and (c) many former patients report
that staff members shouted at demons to flee their body. [Miller
M. The
Mercy Girls: These young women enrolled in an influential Christian
counseling center for help. That's not what they found. Slate,
April 24, 2016] In 2008, the Sydney Morning Herald published
a similar report. [Pollard R. They
sought help, but got exorcism and the Bible. Sydney Morning
Herald, March 17, 2008] The Australian facilities were shut
down in 2009. [Pollard P. Mercy
Ministries home to close. Sydney Morning Herald, Oct 29, 2009]
Shortly afterward, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission
announced:
- It had obtained undertakings from seven former directors of
Mercy Ministries Incorporated and/or Mercy Ministries Limited
related to misrepresentations by those entities. The undertakings
included an apology and payment of AU$1,050 to each of the former
residents affected by the conduct.
- Between January 2005 and June 2008, Mercy Ministries misrepresented
in brochures and on its website that its services were provided
for free, but most residents were required to assign their government
payments from Centrelink to Mercy Ministries for the duration
of their stay.
- Mercy had misrepresented that it offered professional support
from psychologists, dieticians, general practitioners, social
workers and counselors, although it did not employ this range
of professionals. [Undertakings
remedy Mercy Ministries misleading conduct. ACCC press release,
Dec 16, 2009]
Another critical report was published in 2012. [Kerr L. The
dark side of Mercy Ministries. Rewire, Feb 21, 2012]
ACLU blasts
restrictive Catholic Hospital policies (#16-41 November 6, 2016)
The American Civil Liberties Union has published a blistering
report about women who were severely harmed by being denied medically
necessary care at hospitals that adhere to directives issued by
the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. The report states:
- The directives prohibit a range of reproductive health services,
including contraception, sterilization, many infertility treatments,
and abortion, even when a woman's health or life is jeopardized
by a pregnancy.
- Hundreds of hospitals adhere in part or in full to these directives.
- Many of these prohibit staff physicians from performing an abortion
or sterilization even when this denial of care puts a patient
at serious risk.
- Some states have laws that shield providers who follow the guidelines
from liability that otherwise would be considered malpractice.
- Since federal laws and regulations require all hospitals to
provide emergency care, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid
Services should systematically apply these regulations to Catholic
Hospitals.
The
ACLU Web site has additional information and a full copy of the
report.
HHS "religious
freedom" division criticized (#18-03 - January 21, 2018)
The Center for Inquiry (CFI) has objected to the pending
creation of a "Conscience and Religious Freedom Division"
within the Office of Civil Rights (OCR) of the U.S. Department
of Health and Human Service. CFI says the division places religious
dogma over evidence-based health care and compassion. It states:
This new division with the OCR will be tasked with asserting a
religious privilege for health care providers whose beliefs conflict
with certain areas of care or particular procedures, including
but not limited to abortions and sex-reassignment surgery. The
Center for Inquiry maintains that the Trump administration created
this division to attack, rather than defend, civil rights.
CFI believes the Trump Administration should: (a) protect abortion
rights, (b) protect the lives of women with life-threatening pregnancies
from being turned away by church-owned hospitals, (b) ensure that
those seeking birth control can't be turned away by religious
pharmacists, and (c) ensure that all employers follow the mandate
in the Affordable Care Act to provide contraceptive services without
co-pays. [HHS
'Religious Freedom' division robs Americans of their right to
safe and secular health care. CFI press release, Jan 18, 2018]
LGBT groups have criticized the division for being a tool for
enabling ongoing
discriminatory denial of medical services. [Johnson C.
New
HHS division slammed as tool for anti-LGBT discrimination.
Washington Blade, Jan 18, 2018].
CFI opposes
religious-based discrimination against patients (#18-15 - April 15 , 2018)
The Center for Inquiry has urged the U.S. Department of Health
and Human Services to withdraw a proposed
rule expanding the ability of religiously affiliated health
care providers to refuse "any lawful health service or activity
based on religious beliefs or moral convictions." [Protecting
statutory conscience rights in health care. Center for Inquiry,
2018] CFI is particularly concerned about:
undermining the Title X requirement in federally funded programs
for providers to offer non-directive pregnancy options, counseling,
and referrals upon request for all options including pregnancy
termination
women suffering pregnancy complications being denied access to
miscarriage management and sterilization services
medical discrimination against members of the LGBTQ community
patients turned away from church-run hospitals without being told
where they can receive the care they need
[HHS
must reject rule granting religious license to discriminate against
patients. CFI press release, March 27, 2018].
"Pastoral
medicine licensee" arrested (#19-26 - June 30, 2019)
Martin Riding has been charged with 32 felony and 32 misdemeanor
counts of practicing a profession without an appropriate license.
Riding did business as ReNew
For Life, which offered "alternative & holistic health
services" in Radford, Virginia. Riding advertised that he
was licensed by the Pastoral Medical Association (PMA). PMA claims
on its Web site that "regulation of the Almighty's health
care concepts is outside the jurisdiction of . . . secular regulatory
boards." However, regulatory actions against PMA "licensees"
have been successful in several states. [Barrett S. Some
Notes on the Pastoral Medical Association and other "Private
Membership Associations." Credential Watch, June 24,
2019] Riding's ReNew
For Life, Web site and Facebook page are no longer posted,
but PMA's Web site links to a database where Riding's profile
page (now inactivated) stated that his services have included:
alkaline/pH
balancing, Bach
Floral Therapy, cancer
diet coaching, essential
oil therapy, Raindrop
Therapy, Zyto
Biometric Scan, thermography
exams, and cupping.
The indictment
contains no details about Riding's alleged wrongdoing, but a local
newspaper has reported that search warrant applications and interviews
indicate that he had cameras located in exam rooms where women
were directed to undress and photos of women were taken without
their consent. [Gangloff M. Radford
alternative medicine therapist charged with 64 counts of practicing
without a license. The Roanoke Times, June 17, 2019]
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created: August
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