The First Instance Court determined that the Commission breached its duties as outlined in Article 85 (1) of the Treaty.
In a developing legal case, gynecologist Joachim Volz is challenging a ban on performing medically indicated abortions at the Evangelical Hospital Lippstadt, following a merger with the Catholic Trinity Hospital GmbH.
The ban, which applies to both inpatient and outpatient areas, means that abortions are not permitted at the hospital. However, exceptions are made if the life and health of the pregnant woman are in danger.
Volz, who is also a physician at a private practice in Bielefeld, argues that the Catholic sponsor's ban ignores medical judgment, the will of the patient, and the law that allows such a procedure in certain cases. He launched an online petition titled "I am a doctor, and my help is not a sin" on July 1, which has garnered more than 150,000 signatures.
The petition is formally addressed to Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) and the three ministers for health, family, and justice, stating that "church and medicine do not mix" and complaining that, from the perspective of the Catholic sponsor, "every termination of a pregnancy is murder."
The regional Medical Association Westphalia-Lippe supports Volz and his stance against the ban on abortions. On the other hand, the Archdiocese of Paderborn has criticized Volz for publicly questioning the clinic's ethical orientation.
A settlement hearing at the Labor Court in Hamm failed, and the hearing is now scheduled for August 8. A demonstration is planned in Lippstadt on the day of the hearing, with political representatives from the state and federal levels expected to participate.
The Evangelical Hospital Lippstadt has transferred operations to the Catholic Trinity Hospital GmbH following the merger. Under the new arrangement, abortions are only permitted in exceptional cases where the woman's life is in danger, according to the ban. It is worth noting that the number of abortions for medical reasons at the Evangelical Hospital Lippstadt is around 15 per year.
Violations of the service instruction regarding the ban on abortions can lead to employment law consequences, including termination of employment. As this is a developing case, more updates are expected in the coming weeks.
- Joachim Volz, a physician at a private practice in Bielefeld, believes the Catholic sponsor's ban on medically indicated abortions at the Evangelical Hospital Lippstadt, following the hospital's merger with the Catholic Trinity Hospital GmbH, disregards medical judgment, patient autonomy, and the applicable law.
- In the petition titled "I am a doctor, and my help is not a sin," Volz expresses his concerns about the Catholic sponsor viewing every termination of a pregnancy as murder, arguing that church and medicine should remain separate.
- The regional Medical Association Westphalia-Lippe supports Volz's stance against the ban on abortions, while the Archdiocese of Paderborn has criticized Volz for publicly questioning the clinic's ethical orientation.
- As the legal case regarding the abortion ban at the Evangelical Hospital Lippstadt develops, political representatives from the state and federal levels are expected to participate in a demonstration in Lippstadt on August 8, the scheduled day for the hearing at the Labor Court in Hamm.
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