A frequent quip during an election year is that elections matter, and 2024 was no exception. Now that the 2024 election is over, I want to explore how this election will likely impact our efforts here at CMDA to protect the vulnerable. I will begin by examining the results of the abortion measures included on the ballots in 10 states: Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Maryland, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New York and South Dakota.

 

Seven of those states (Arizona, Colorado, Maryland, Missouri, Montana, Nevada and New York) passed amendments that increased access to abortion through various means, including repealing a measure preventing access to public funds for abortion in Colorado. Three of the states (Florida, Nebraska and South Dakota) defeated ballot measures that would have allowed abortion through the entirety of pregnancy. Nebraska did approve a ballot amendment limiting abortion beyond 12 weeks gestation. In summary, the results of the abortion ballot measures reveal a majority of the U.S. population prefers allowing access to abortion rather than limiting abortion.

 

The Republican Party’s move away from a robust pro-life position this election year further confirms the now-famous Andrew Breitbart quote that “…politics is downstream from culture.” In other words, politicians will typically follow cultural trends to get elected. Put another way, if the pro-life movement wants to impact the politics of abortion, we must change the culture. After all, Jesus did call us to be salt and light to those around us. Therefore, CMDA’s Advocacy team is exploring options to better equip our members to change views regarding abortion within their spheres of influence.

 

Despite the Republican Party backtracking on the issue of abortion, this new White House administration is likely to remove several policies threatening the lives of the preborn. Those policies include the current weaponization of the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA) to force healthcare professionals in pro-life states to perform abortions under contrived emergencies. It is also likely the new leadership of the Veterans Administration (VA) will stop all abortions at VA facilities within pro-life states. Under this new administration, we can also hope U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will reverse its policy of progressively relaxing prescribing regulations for the chemical abortion drug mifepristone, returning to the policy of requiring in-person evaluation before prescribing. A final welcome change for the incoming administration would be a reversal of the policy of withholding federal funds under Title X for women’s care in pro-life states when facilities refuse to refer for abortion. Several state lawsuits in federal court over this anti-life strategy will likely be dropped if this policy is reversed. To learn more about our work protecting the preborn, visit cmda.org/abortion or freedom2care.org/abortion/.

 

CMDA continues to engage in protecting vulnerable children and adolescents from becoming entrapped in transgender ideology. In a campaign video, President-elect Trump promised to end gender-transition therapy, not only in minors but also in adults. He also promised to end federal funding for gender transition and, importantly, create a private right of action for minor victims that would allow them to file lawsuits against healthcare entities involved in their gender transition. Other related promised initiatives include the prohibition of any promotion of gender ideology within schools, requesting Congress to pass legislation recognizing only two biological sexes and returning Title IX provisions to their original intent, thus preventing biological males from participating in female sports.

 

As the push for gender-transition therapy within the federal government lessens over the next several months, we also hope the conscience freedoms of Christian healthcare professionals opposed to gender-transition therapy are respected. A number of CMDA members have experienced conscience threats as they have been coerced to engage in gender-transition therapy, with some experiencing loss of employment. Over the last two years, we have been extremely thankful to Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) for their generous grant to provide legal counsel to our members experiencing conscience threats. If you are experiencing a conscience threat at your workplace, please inform us at cmda.org/legal. To learn more about our efforts to protect minors from transgender ideology, visit cmda.org/transgender or freedom2care.org/gender.

 

Regarding our efforts to protect vulnerable healthcare professionals from conscience threats, we continue to work closely with ADF to introduce their Medical Ethics and Diversity (MED) Act into various state legislatures. Even though there are federal conscience protections such as the Weldon and Church Amendments, they lack the critical legal tools to allow individuals to take action to protect themselves from an ongoing conscience threat. The MED Act contains essential provisions that allow for a private right of action at the state level, but we need your help to pass this vital legislation in your states. It is you, our members, who can gain the attention of your elected state officials and convince them to vote for this measure. So, please ensure you are signed up to receive our advocacy emails and watch closely for an email informing you that we are introducing the MED Act in your state. You can access our advocacy newsletter, The Advocacy Report, as well as our advocacy podcast, The Voice of Advocacy, at cmda.org/advocacy or freedom2care.org/news-and-information.

 

The software we use to follow pending state and federal legislation is designed to make engaging with your elected officials easy and efficient by automatically addressing the proper officials through your ZIP code. Thus, it takes only a few minutes of your time to contact your elected representatives directly, expressing your personal request they support this crucial legislation.

 

As we prepare for a busy legislative season in the new year, please continue to pray for the CMDA Advocacy team and volunteers around the country. They play a vital role in promoting God-honoring legislation in their states. Your prayers are what enable and sustain us in this work.