NJ Hospital Requiring Parents To Fill Out Controversial Questionnaire About Their Newborns
Is it too soon to ask what the baby identifies as?
Kelly Sikkema | Unsplash While filling out paperwork for healthcare services is pretty standard, New Jersey parents are raising concern after one NJ hospital began requiring parents to fill out a controversial questionnaire about their newborns.
Understanding a patient's demographic background can help healthcare providers deliver more personalized and respectful care. However, the timing and approach are where the true controversy lies in this situation.
An Inspira Health hospital in New Jersey is receiving some backlash for requiring new parents to fill out a controversial questionnaire about their newborns' gender identity.
The questionnaire stems from a 2022 state law known as A-4385 that New Jersey State Senator Joseph P. Cryan and U.S. Representative Herb Conaway Jr sponsored. Its purpose is to collect demographic data, including race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, and gender identity.
The law itself is trying to address broader issues of inclusivity and health equity, but there are definitely valid concerns that the timing and the method of collection might not be the best way to achieve that goal. It’s definitely a tricky area between inclusion and personal boundaries, and finding the right balance will take ongoing conversation and consideration.
Though the law states that healthcare providers and hospitals have to ask patients for personal information to attain demographic data, there are no specific age requirements for it.
Assemblywoman Holly Schepisi described the mandate as 'completely and utterly insane.'
Schepisi emphasized that it compels parents to complete forms about their newborn's gender and sexual orientation shortly after birth. Congressman Jeff Van Drew also criticized the policy, stating that it imposes a "radical narrative" on newborns and distracts parents from bonding with their children. He expressed intentions to introduce legislation to counteract such state mandates.
Inspira Health spokesperson Paul Simon told NJ.com that his company was simply following the law stating, “Inspira Health, along with every other acute care hospital in New Jersey, is required by New Jersey law and the State of New Jersey Department of Health to request their patients provide their race, ethnicity, sexual orientation and gender identity.”
In response to the backlash, lawmakers are considering amendments to the law to address public concerns. While the data collection aims to enhance cultural competence in healthcare, the current approach has sparked debate regarding its necessity and timing.
Laws should ideally reflect the needs and values of the entire population, not just a specific subset.
One thing to learn from all of this is that when legislation is passed based on personal or political biases, it can lead to laws that don't always serve the best interests of everyone within the community. When policymakers push through laws based on their personal opinions, they risk leaving out or even harming communities who don't share those views. This leads to feelings of exclusion and a lack of trust in the political system. It’s understandable that in a political environment dominated by prejudice it will often stifle any compromises.
Kelly Sikkema | Unsplash
It’s one thing for certain groups to be criticized for their prejudices towards the LGBTQ+ community, but creating a law that requires parents to define their newborn's gender or sexual identity, especially when they haven't even had a chance to fully understand their identity yet, feels like an overstep. It raises questions about the balance between collecting demographic data and respecting the autonomy of families, especially when it involves such personal details about a child.
While the last choice of the questionnaire ends with "prefer not to answer" there is no option for "I don’t know yet, my baby is just a baby" as a choice.
Sylvia Ojeda is an author with a decade of experience writing novels and screenplays. She covers self-help, relationships, culture, and human interest topics.