Link: https://www.propublica.org/article/idaho-faith-healing-multiple-deaths

The parents told officers that they hadn’t taken the four children who died to the doctor because of their religion, the Followers of Christ, which considers the use of modern medicine a sinful lapse of faith in God. And Idaho exempts parents from faith-healing sects like the Followers from the legal duty to give their children lifesaving medical care.

The sect had at least 15 avoidable deaths among children from 2015 through 2025, according to healthcare professionals who reviewed their records for ProPublica.

Among them were children in five families, including Emma Joyce’s, who had a combined total of two, three or four losses in this period or earlier.

I'm sick of journalists writing about a law without either citing the law, linking to it, or directly quoting it.

Had to find this myself:

The practice of a parent or guardian who chooses for his child treatment by prayer or spiritual means alone shall not for that reason alone be construed to have violated the duty of care to such child.

https://legislature.idaho.gov/statutesrules/idstat/title18/t18ch15/sect18-1501/

Edit: thinking about this a bit, the text says "for that reason alone". I would argue that these parents do not meet that bar because the children actually are harmed. In other words, arrest them and medicate the children not because they are attempting faith healing, but because they are attempting faith healing plus it isnt working. If the faith healing works, then the duty of care hasn't been violated.

Technically if you believe they're alive in the after life sense and doing stuff with God and co... Then they are "cured", healthy, and doing just great.

This is the problem with allowing religion any hint of belief or legitimacy - all of a sudden death isn't the medical failure it used to be.