Catholic Hospital Allowed to Keep Chapel Candle Lit Despite Federal Threats

The Biden administration has withdrawn its threat to remove federal accreditation from a Catholic hospital system in Oklahoma if it did not remove a sacred candle in a hospital chapel. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) informed Saint Francis Health System that it was free to keep the sanctuary candle lit. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), an HHS subagency, had previously determined that the candle posed a fire threat and threatened to strip the hospital system of its ability to accept Medicare, Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program. The decision to abandon the attempt to punish Saint Francis Health System came after the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, a law firm representing the hospital system, warned that it was prepared to file a federal lawsuit on behalf of the hospital to defend its use of the candle.