A Christian physician assistant who says she was wrongfully terminated because of her religious objections to her employer’s transgender affirming policy finally had her day in court, over three years after she lost her job.
Valerie Kloosterman worked for 17 years as a physician assistant for Metro Health Caledonia, a rural outpatient clinic operated by the University of Michigan Health-West (UMHW). She was terminated in August 2021 after allegedly seeking religious accommodation in order to not be forced to use patients’ preferred pronouns or refer patients for transgender surgical procedures and drugs.
Law firms First Liberty and Clement & Murphy, PLLC, filed a lawsuit against UMHW, accusing the health system of violating Kloosterman’s First and Fourteenth Amendment rights to free exercise of religion, freedom of speech, and equal protection; and violating Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, when she was terminated from her job.
Michigan attorneys James Wieranga and David J. Williams also filed the suit on Kloosterman’s behalf.
After years of legal delays to Kloosterman’s case, her attorneys were able to deliver oral arguments before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit on February 6.
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Kloosterman told Fox News Digital that shortly before her termination from UMHW, she was required to complete a diversity training module that required her to affirm statements concerning sexual orientation and gender identity that went against her Christian faith.
“Two of those questions specifically stated that gender was fluid. I couldn’t put, ‘No, I don’t believe that, as we were made in the image of God, it’s something that God designed us to be. It’s not something that we’re assigned with at birth.’ But I couldn’t put, ‘No.’ It wouldn’t let me complete the mandatory survey, and they had already stated you would be terminated if you didn’t fill it out,” she said.
Kloosterman said that during her 17 years of practice, she had treated LGBT patients the same as any other patient and without any conflicts. She said she had never encountered a situation where she was compelled to use a patient’s chosen pronouns.
When she sought a religious exemption through HR for the hypothetical situation, several meetings ensued. At her final meeting before her termination, Kloosterman claims she was berated by UMHW’s diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) program coordinator over her religious beliefs.
“The meeting became hostile. This individual called me a liar for stating that I saw patients of the LGBT community and had no issues, no concerns with them. He said that I was ‘evil’ because I wouldn’t consider referring these patients for gender-changing surgery,” she said.
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This same DEI official also allegedly mocked her faith and told her she would cause transgender patients to commit suicide by not affirming their pronouns, the suit says.
Kloosterman said that leadership told her the conversation would continue at another time. But a month later, she was abruptly called into the office and fired on the spot, the lawsuit says.
“I was not given a chance to close my chart. I was not given a chance to tell my patients. I was not even allowed to go back to the office to get my personal belongings,” she told Fox News Digital.
Kloosterman said she left the office stunned that her employer would fire her because of her religious opposition to a hypothetical situation.
She was also heartbroken that her patients, whom she had built long-term relationships with, would be left in the dark as to why she was suddenly no longer their provider.
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“I had several patients in my mind that I thought ‘I have diagnoses I need to tell them’… I had promised that I would call them back. And I couldn’t do that. And I was breaking that promise to them. I didn’t know how to help them… You have so many things going through your mind. ‘How could I let them down and not explain to them?’” she said.
While the ordeal has tested her faith, it’s also opened up conversations with her sons about what it means to trust in God’s provision when times are hard, Kloosterman said.
“This is not my battle or my journey, right?” she said of these conversations with her family. “This is about God and glorifying God and being faithful and being honest and knowing that I need to do that every step of the way. If it’s emotional, if it’s hard, if it means losing my job, I have to do that. That is what it is to be a Christian. And I wear that hopefully glorifying God every day.”
The lawsuit states that Kloosterman was an “exemplary” employee who had never been subject to discipline up to the point of her firing. She had a “stellar” reputation with her patients, and “gladly served” patients of all different beliefs and backgrounds, including those who identified as lesbian, gay, or experiencing gender dysphoria, according to court documents.
Kloosterman filed a charge of discrimination with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and First Liberty sued after the health system allegedly refused their request to reinstate Kloosterman.
They are seeking monetary damages, equitable relief, and for Kloosterman to be reinstated to UMHW with accommodation for issues surrounding transgender pronouns and surgery referrals.
UMHW did not respond to a request for comment.
In a previous statement regarding the lawsuit, UMHW told Fox News Digital, “University of Michigan Health-West is committed to providing appropriate medical treatment to all patients and respects the religious beliefs of its employees. We are confident Ms. Kloosterman’s claims, like those she filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, are without merit.”
The healthcare system boasts of its DEI values on its website and says that it has been nationally recognized for its commitment to LGBTQ patients.
“UM Health-West is the highest-scoring system in Grand Rapids area and earns designation as an LGBTQ+ Healthcare Equality Top Performer,” its website says.
During his first days in office, President Donald Trump signed an executive order to restrict “chemical and surgical” sex-change procedures for minors.
Several children’s hospitals and clinics across the country have disregarded the order and vowed to continue offering transgender medical treatments to patients.
Fox News’ Jon Brown contributed to this article.
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