Rep. Mike Flood is fighting for Americans in a hospital or nursing home to never again be barred from seeing clergy, as happened during COVID-19.
He introduced the PASTOR Act on Wednesday to guarantee that right, saying the bill was inspired by a pastor separated from ill parishioners during the pandemic.
“We forget what a difficult time that was, especially for folks that were in long-term care, skilled care facilities,” said Mr. Flood, a Catholic. “They were basically locked in their room all day long, 24 hours a day, sometimes months on end.”
During the pandemic, hospitals across the country restricted visits, including from members of the clergy, with emergency waivers superseding visitation rights.
Mr. Flood, Nebraska Republican, said he was shocked to learn that the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services guidelines encouraging access for clergy were “nonbinding, and there was no clear definition or protection for clergy when going to see patients.”
The PASTOR Act would change that.
It would require all Medicare providers to allow a patient’s chosen clergy member to visit them whenever the patient asks, even during national emergencies or public-health crises when normal visitation rules are suspended.
The bill also requires members of the clergy to comply with safety measures and other protocols when visiting people in a hospital or nursing home setting.
Mr. Flood said he used his chairmanship of the House Main Street Caucus, a large group of Republicans mostly from swing districts, to organize support for the legislation to advance in committee.
“We have a number of Main Street members that agree with this bill, and I’ll be working with them,” he said. “We need to put in place these protections.”
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