A bipartisan group of Ohio Lawmakers introduced a bill prohibiting intimate examinations on anesthetized and unconscious patients without their consent.
House Bill (HB) 89, sponsored by state Representatives Brett Hillyer (R-Uhrichsville) (pictured above, right) and Munira Abdullahi (D-Columbus) (pictured above, left), aims to require specific consent from patients before doctors, nurses, and medical providers-in-training perform intimate pelvic, prostate, or rectal exams as part of their training while patients are unconscious for an unrelated procedure.
According to Hillyer, this issue is happening in Ohio and throughout the country.
“It’s an issue that’s happening and several states have passed this legislation already but what it deals with are intimate and pelvic exams on patients. When a patient goes into a hospital for surgery and, for instance, if you went into a hospital to have your tonsils removed, you may be surprised that an intimate or pelvic exam was performed on you while you were under anesthetic by a resident physician or a doctor,” Hillyer said.
A recent survey published in the National Library of Medicine found that of 101 medical students from seven American medical schools, 92 percent had performed a pelvic exam on anesthetized female patients, 61 percent of whom reported not having explicit consent.
According to Abdullahi, regional surveys from the early 200s reached similar conclusions.
“Nearly 75 percent of the patients did not consent to the exam. Among medical students in Philadelphia, 90 percent said they’d performed pelvic exams on unconscious women and, again, they weren’t sure if the women consented,” Abdullahi said.
In the early 2000s, the Association of American Medical Colleges called the practice “unethical and unacceptable.”
In 2020, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists reiterated its recommendation that consent be obtained before conducting intimate exams without personal benefit to the subject.
Twenty-one states, such as California, Iowa, New York, Utah, Hawaii, Illinois, and Maryland, have passed similar legislation to HB 89 to protect their constituents.
Abdullahi said that it’s absurd that Ohio has not yet banned the practice.
“There are people who are willing to assist science and students, but it’s not fair to use people who are not consenting, who are not aware. It’s a complete violation of their privacy and human dignity,” Abdullahi said.
According to State Representative P. Scott Lipps (R-Franklin), he was unaware of this practice.
“It was something very foreign to me that I had no idea was occurring,” Lipps said.
The consent requirement of the bill does not apply when an intimate exam is necessary for diagnostic purposes or the patient’s medical condition, when the exam is within the scope of the patient’s care, when the patient or the patient’s legal representative gives specific, informed consent, or when a court orders the intimate exam to gather evidence. The method for obtaining consent is not laid out in the bill.
Hillyer said, “It is imperative that we prioritize patient privacy and dignity in medical settings. It is a fundamental right of every patient to receive medical care that respects their body and preserves their dignity.”
Providers could be investigated and penalized under HB 89 if they conduct an intimate exam without consent.
The legislation is currently under review in the House Public Health Policy Committee.
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Hannah Poling is a lead reporter at The Ohio Star and The Star News Network. Follow Hannah on Twitter @HannahPoling1. Email tips to [email protected]
Photo “Brett Hillyer” by Brett Hillyer for State Representative. Photo “Munira Abdullahi” by The Ohio House of Representatives. Background Photo “Doctor and Patient” by RDNE Stock project.
