Christian medic fired over biblical views awarded $410k payout

A US medic who was sacked for refusing to compromise her belief that “God created humans male and female” has received a significant settlement.

In 2021, Valerie Kloosterman lost her job as a physician assistant at the University of Michigan Health-West Hospital (UMHW), after she raised faith-based objections to referring gender-confused patients for transgender surgery or using their ‘preferred pronouns’.

But Kloosterman’s legal team at First Liberty Institute now reports that UMHW has agreed to pay $410,000 in damages and fees and will honour future requests by employees for reasonable religious accommodation.

Faith in Christ

Welcoming the settlement with her former employer, Kloosterman said: “All I wanted to do was provide the best care possible to my patients without being forced to violate my Christian beliefs”.

Speaking before the Religious Liberty Commission earlier this year, Kloosterman explained that it was her “faith in Christ” that first led her to enter the health care profession and that same faith still informs her work.

“I believe and know that everyone is created in the image of God and worthy of love and respect, that God created humans male and female as a reflection of his image and for his glory, and that God doesn’t make mistakes.”

‘Interrogated’

When UMHW took over the clinic where she worked, Kloosterman said that mandatory training attempted to force her to “affirm statements about sexual orientation and gender identity that conflicted with God’s word”.

But after asking for a religious accommodation, she was summoned to a meeting where she was “interrogated” about whether she would use ‘preferred pronouns’ or refer patients for transgender surgery.

One ‘diversity, equality and inclusion’ (DEI) official “clenched his fist and told me that I could not take the Bible or my religious beliefs to work with me”, she said, while accusing her of being “evil” for not giving patients ‘exactly what they wanted’.

Kloosterman concluded that the “Department of Inclusion had no space for Christian beliefs. Less than a month later, I was fired”.

Protections

First Liberty Counsel Kayla Toney said in a statement: “Valerie is an exceptional physician assistant who cares for each of her patients.”

“Employers cannot drive out people like Valerie just because of their sincere religious beliefs”.

She added: “We are grateful to have resolved this matter with University of Michigan Health-West.”

During DEI training at UMHW, staff are now told that they will not be “required to participate in procedures, medications, or referrals” for transgender surgery or “be required to use pronouns in a way that violates their religious beliefs or conscience”.

‘Ideological capture’

Speaking to The Christian Institute, Dr Peter Saunders, CEO of the International Christian Medical & Dental Association — of which Kloosterman is a regional member — observed: “This physician assistant has been quite rightfully vindicated and this case should sound a loud warning to all healthcare institutions of the dangers of ideological capture.

“No health professional should be forced to participate in procedures that that they believe are both morally wrong and of no proven medical benefit. It is an appalling abuse of power.”