Mich. Doctor Defends Decision to Deny Lesbian Couple Treatment For Baby

A pediatrician in Michigan is reportedly making waves for denying to see the child of a same-sex couple due to her personal beliefs.

Jami and Krista Contreras of Oak Park, Michigan have voiced their story to local media outlets regarding a doctor's refusal to treat their baby after "much prayer" because the two women were lesbians.

The women were reportedly told while in the doctor's office that the pediatrician, 49-year-old Vesna Roi, would not be able to see them due to their sexuality.

The Contreras have spoken out against Roi's decision not to see them, arguing that they are not her patients, but rather their baby, Bay, is her sole patient.

"As far as we know, Bay doesn't have a sexual orientation yet so I'm not really sure what that matters," Jami Contreras told WABC-TV. "We're not your patient - she's your patient. And the fact is that your job is to keep babies healthy and you can't keep a baby healthy that has gay parents?"

As the Detroit Free Press reports, Michigan does not have a law prohibiting the discrimination of members of the LGBT community.

The pediatrician who denied the Contreras' visit, Vesna Roi of Eastlake Pediatrics, has reportedly been in the medical practice for 19 years and issued an apology to the lesbian couple for denying them medical care, but continued to defend her stance on why she chose not to treat the Contreras' baby. 

"Dear Jami & Krista, I am writing this letter of apology as I feel that it is important and necessary. I never meant to hurt either of you. After much prayer following your prenatal (visit), I felt that I would not be able to develop the personal patient doctor relationship that I normally do with my patients," Roi wrote.