The Italian Bishops Conference
(CEI) on Wednesday slammed the planned hiring of two
gynecologists at Rome's San Camillo Hospital on a contract that
envisages their dismissal if they refuse to perform abortions
because of conscience. The CEI said conscientious objection was "a right" that must be preserved.
Women regularly complain about the difficulty of obtaining an abortion in Italian hospitals, where conscientious-objector doctors are a majority.