January 23, 2025
Nate Crippes / Public Affairs Supervising Attorney
ncrippes@disabilitylawcenter.org
Andrew Riggle / Public Policy Advocate
ariggle@disabilitylawcenter.org
(801) 363-1347 / (800) 662-9080
disabilitylawcenter.org
This was a tough bill because the sponsor, other stakeholders who we often work with and agree with, as well as staff, were all so helpful in trying to find a way to make this work for everyone. So we appreciate all the work, but we do have to speak against this bill.
Unfortunately, adults with disabilities are often perceived as not capable of doing the same things as their nondisabled peers, things like having a drink or engaging in consensual romantic activities. We fear that this bill perpetuates some of that stigma, albeit unintentionally, by making it a crime for health care workers to engage in consensual sex with a population that will be disproportionately those with disabilities.
As an example, if I were to go to a monthly appointment for my health that I have, and I made the poor decision to have sex with the nurse who provides that care, they are not committing a crime. However, if my colleague Andrew Riggle, who many of you know, did the same, that nurse is now committing a crime simply because he has a disability.
These might be poor decisions for anyone to make, but we believe in the dignity of risk. Just because a person has a disability doesn’t mean they shouldn’t get to make the same bad decisions we do.
In addition, we believe a better way to address this concern would be through further regulation and licensing of the kinds of health care workers that this bill tries to address because they are currently unregulated. Once again, we appreciate all the work that went into improving this bill.
Thank you.