Catholic Nuns Sue New York As Gender Identification Legislation Forces Non secular Hospice to Comply

Catholic nuns who operate a free hospice for low-income cancer patients are suing New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and state health officials over a law they say could subject them to fines, licensing consequences, and potential criminal penalties if they do not change how they operate.

Signed into law on Nov. 30, 2023, the measure establishes a long-term care facility residents’ bill of rights covering sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, and HIV status.

Mother Marie Edward, O.P., the superior of the Dominican Sisters of Hawthorne and president of Rosary Hill Home, said:

“We are consecrated religious Sisters and have one mission. It is to provide comfort and skilled care to persons dying of cancer who cannot afford nursing care. We do not take insurance or government funds or money from our patients or families. The care is totally free.

We are supported by the goodness of our benefactors. We do this without discriminating on the basis of race, religion, or sex. We do it because Jesus taught us that, when the least among us are sick, we should care for them, as if they were Christ himself.”

Rosary Hill is a 42-bed facility that does not accept payment from patients, insurers, or government programs. Over a four-year period ending Jan. 31, 2026, it recorded zero complaints and zero citations, compared to an average of 23 citations at other nursing homes during the same period.

The statute regulates how facilities assign rooms, control access to shared spaces, and communicate with residents. It prohibits room assignments that conflict with a resident’s gender identity and targets facilities that “willfully and repeatedly fail to use a resident’s preferred name or pronouns after being clearly informed of the preferred name or pronouns.”

The facility houses patients by biological sex and maintains sex-specific living spaces, arrangements the complaint says the law would require the facility to overhaul, including room assignments, bathroom access, pronoun use, posted notices, and staff training.

“New York’s LGBTQ Long-Term Care Facility Residents’ Bill of Rights… require long-term care facilities to assign patients to rooms based on stated ‘gender identity’ rather than biological sex… [and] to use patients’ ‘preferred pronouns’ even when the patient is not present.”

The New York State Department of Health has sent three “Dear Administrator” letters outlining compliance requirements on room assignments, pronoun usage, and access to shared spaces, and has said it remains committed to enforcing the law’s nondiscrimination protections.

Mother Marie Edward said the mandates put the facility’s existence at risk. “New York’s gender ideology mandates not only violate our Catholic values, they threaten our existence with fines, injunctions, license revocation, and even jail time,” she said.

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Facilities must also record each resident’s gender identity and pronouns, post nondiscrimination notices, and provide staff with recurring training on cultural competency tied to gender identity and sexual orientation.

The law includes an exemption for facilities operated by Christian Scientists, a provision written into the original legislation. Catholic facilities such as Rosary Hill were not granted similar protections.

Violations can trigger fines of up to $2,000 per instance, rising to $5,000 for repeat offenses. Additional penalties include court orders, licensing consequences, and up to one year in prison. 

“If the Dominican Sisters… do not comply, they face fines, injunctions, potential loss of licensing, and imprisonment.”

The Dominican Sisters say they will continue operating Rosary Hill under their current practices, leaving the question of penalties to the courts. In a statement, Sister Stella Mary, O.P., put it plainly: “We intend to continue honoring this sacred obligation but need relief from the Court to do so.”

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