CMC Works Out Deal with Dartmouth-Hitchcock

By Dan Gorenstein on Thursday, July 23, 2009.

Conservative Catholics and abortion rights activists are concerned about a proposed agreement between Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center and Catholic Medical Center.

New Hampshire Public Radio’s Dan Gorenstein reports.

Dartmouth-Hitchcock and Catholic Medical Center, or CMC, say the collaboration will offer Manchester more healthcare options and keep costs down.

Abortion rights activists worry the Catholic directives that govern CMC will make it harder to get contraception or referrals to reproductive services.

Shiobhan Tautku, a Manchester business owner, who describes herself as a devout Catholic, says she and others fear the exact opposite problem.

TAPE: it’s not just the providing of the care. But it’s the fact that they have believed in this hospital and struggle to retain a Catholic identity and don’t want to see that lost.

In an effort to avoid problems, the two medical organizations agree Dartmouth doctors could continue offering voluntary sterilization and other procedures outside of the agreement.

The Attorney General’s Office now must conduct an anti-trust and charitable trust review before the deal is finalized.

Public hearings will be held in the fall.