Supreme Court Asked to Block NY Vaccine Mandate for Healthcare Workers

Healthcare workers in New York petitioned the Supreme Court on Feb 14 to block the state's COVID-19 vaccine mandate for healthcare employees.

New York's vaccine mandate for healthcare workers does not allow for religious exemptions- something that is particularly problematic for pro-life workers. Many pro-lifers take issue with the fact that all currently available COVID-19 vaccines were either developed or manufactured through the use of cell lines harvested from aborted children. For that reason, those pro-lifers often choose not to take these vaccines.

New York is one of only three states that don't allow workers to file religious exemptions to its vaccine mandate. Workers who do not conform to the mandate will be fired, and they will not be allowed to receive unemployment benefits.

The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty and the Thomas More Society filed the lawsuit against New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) on behalf of 17 healthcare workers. These workers argue that the mandate violates their religious beliefs.

Click here to read more.

Biden Admin Launches Pro-Abortion Task Force

A new task force created by the Biden administration plans to "protect and bolster" abortion in the US and abroad.

Last month, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) launched the "Reproductive Healthcare Access Task Force." A Jan 21 press release stated that the task force "is composed of senior-level HHS officials who have been designated by their respective agencies to identify and coordinate activities across the Department to protect and bolster access to essential sexual and reproductive health care."

The press release listed several actions that this task force might consider to promote abortion access. One example involved partnering with other organizations to support policies that promote abortion globally, while another suggested that the task force could initiate a PR campaign to counter pro-life arguments that abortion is not health care.

This task force comes as a response to the upcoming challenge to Roe v. Wade and the increasing number of pro-life state laws. The HHS argued in its press release that pro-life laws lead to an increase in infant mortality, but this argument fails to account for the glaring fact that every "successful" abortion ends the life of a child.

Click here to read more.

Nurse Sues CVS after being Fired for Refusal to Prescribe Abortifacients

photo credit: Mike Mozart / Flickr

A former nurse who worked at CVS is suing the company for firing her after she refused to prescribe contraceptives that can work as abortifacients.

Robyn Strader worked as a nurse practitioner at a CVS Pharmacy in Keller, Texas for 6.5 years. During that time, she refused to prescribe birth control medication because it can often function as an abortifacient. Emergency contraception medication attempts to prevent the egg from implanting in the mother's womb. If that egg has been fertilized, it is a human life. Preventing that egg from implanting will abort that life.

The First Liberty Institute is representing Strader in her lawsuit. The organization sent a letter to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission on her behalf. According to the letter, Strader asked for religious accommodation before she was hired, to which CVS agreed. “[f]or the next 6.5 years,” the letter explains, “CVS accommodated Ms. Strader with no issues. On the rare occasions someone requested contraception, Ms. Strader referred them to the other nurse practitioner at her location or to another CVS MinuteClinic two miles away.”

The letter goes on to state that CVS changed its position in 2021, announcing that “all nurses must perform essential services related to pregnancy prevention.” CVS's definition of "essential services" included the prescription of emergency contraception medication.

“I am a Christian and longtime member of a Baptist Church,” Strader said. “I believe that all human life is created in God’s image and should be protected. For this reason, I cannot participate in facilitating an abortion or participate in facilitating contraceptive use that could prevent the implantation of an embryo, cause an abortion, or contribute to infertility.”

Click here to read more.

Senate Confirms Pro-Abortion Robert Califf as FDA Commissioner

Robert Califf
photo credit: Christopher Michel / Flickr

On Feb 15, the US Senate voted 50-46 to confirm Robert Califf as the new commissioner for the FDA.

Califf previously held this position during 2016 under the Obama administration. During this time, the FDA extended the approved use of the abortion pill to the tenth week of gestation. Before then, the use of the abortion pill was limited to the first seven weeks of pregnancy.

Under Califf's direction, the FDA also modified regulations so that abortion businesses could give women abortion pills to take without medical supervision. The second part of the abortion pill regimen causes a woman to go into labor and "miscarry," her aborted child. Without supervision, this process could pose significant risks to the mother's health.

The FDA also decided in 2016 to alter regulations so that the abortion pill's manufacturer, Danco Laboratories, would no longer be required to report adverse events (other than death) linked to abortion pills. After this change, it has been impossible to know for sure just how many women have suffered complications after taking abortion pills.

Califf's past actions demonstrate that he is willing to sacrifice the safety of women to empower the abortion industry.

Click here to read more.

New House Bill Would Require Abortion Pill Complications to be Reported to FDA

A new bill introduced by Rep. Jackie Walorski (R-IN) would create reporting requirements for adverse effects associated with abortion pills.

Walorski introduced the Safeguarding Women's and Children's Health Act of 2022 this month to ensure that complications caused by the abortion pill are accurately documented. The legislation would require abortion pill complications to be reported to both the pill's manufacturer and the FDA. Currently, abortion businesses only need to report adverse events to the abortion pill's manufacturer. The manufacturer can then report those events to the FDA, but it is only required to report deaths.

Only 28 states require abortion businesses to report complications directly to the government.

“As chemical abortions become more frequent, American women need to know the risks of abortion pills such as mifepristone. While the Biden Administration’s FDA recklessly removes guardrails on chemical abortion drug prescribing, too many of the facts are unknown. Women who take abortion drugs are ending up in emergency rooms – or worse,” Walorski said.

There is currently an upward trend of prescribing women abortion pills without first examining them to verify the gestational age of the child or if there are any rare pregnancy conditions. If the child is past the gestational age at which the abortion pill regimen is designed to work, attempting the abortion pill regimen could pose major medical risks. The same would be true if the mother had an undiagnosed ectopic pregnancy. This is especially risky if the woman attempts this kind of abortion while home alone, which is also increasingly common.

Click here to read more.

Fauci NIAID Funding Over $20M for Fetal Tissue Experiments

NIAID Director Dr. Anthony Fauci

An analysis by The White Coat Waste Project (WCW) found that the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) run by Dr. Anthony Fauci is putting over $20 million towards studies involving fetal tissue.

The WCW report found that the experiments include such things as transplanting fetal lungs, liver, and thymus into mice.

The National Institute of Health (NIH) is putting $27 million towards such studies. Almost 80% of those funds are coming from NIAID. The NIH plans to spend $88 million on similar research throughout its 2022 fiscal year.

"A majority of Republican and Democrat taxpayers don’t want to be forced to pay university white coats tens of millions of dollars each year to implant fingers, scalps, eyes and other parts from aborted human fetuses into monkeys and mice for nightmarish experiments," WCW Development Manager Christine McPherson told Fox News.

Recently, the government has come under fire for funding several studies involving "humanized mice." Studies such as these utilize cells and organs harvested from aborted children.

Click here to read more.

Ohio State University "Sex Week" Asks Students to Make Valentines for Abortionists

Ohio State University is sponsoring an event called "Sex Week" from Feb 13-19. As part of this event, the school is encouraging students to send valentines to thank abortionists.

"Sex Week" is being hosted by a pro-abortion campus group, and it is being funded by Ohio State University and NARAl Pro-Choice America.

In addition to the valentines event, the school will host a panel discussion about how to fight for "reproductive rights" and an open-mic fundraising event for Texas abortionists.

Kristan Hawkins, president of Students for Life of America, criticized Ohio state for hosting such "Sex Week" events:

"It’s pathetic that schools are ignoring their mandate to educate students and instead act as though their real purpose is facilitating the parties. This is a great disservice to students. And a huge waste of money for parents. Almost always ignored by these sponsors is the fact that you can’t protect emotionally vulnerable students from a broken heart when they follow the false pitch that all consequences — babies included — can be ignored."

Click here to read more.

Marist Poll Finds Support for Abortion Restrictions

A Marist poll released last month found that 71% of respondents support significant restrictions on abortion.

When asked to choose between statements that reflect their opinions on abortion, 71% responded that abortion should be limited to either the first three months of pregnancy, cases of rape and incest, to save the life of the mother, or prohibited entirely.

The poll also found that 73% oppose using tax dollars to fund abortion abroad, 63% oppose mail-order prescriptions for abortion pills. 54% said that organizations with religious objections to abortion should not be required to provide insurance coverage for abortions.

“When it comes to the direction of government policy, there has been consistency and consensus in American public opinion on the issue of abortion over the decades,” explained Dr. Barbara Carvalho, director of the Marist Poll.

Click here to read more.

Senators Promote Bill to Help Pregnant Women Keep Working

Legislators are pushing to pass legislation that would make it easier for pregnant women to keep working rather than quit their jobs, delay having children, or feel pressured into abortion.

The Pregnancy Workers Fairness Act has been introduced in every Congress since 2011, but Sens. Bob Casey (D-PA) and Bill Cassidy (R-LA) have voiced an intent to get it passed this year. The bill was passed by the House of Representatives last May by a vote of 315-101. Since then, it has advanced through several Senate committees.

The Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978 protects women from being fired or denied employment due to pregnancy, but it does not require businesses to provide accommodations that would help them to continue working. Proponents of the Pregnancy Workers Fairness Act argue that new legislation would help pregnant women by creating a requirement for businesses to provide "simple and reasonable accommodations." Such accommodations might include a place to sit or water to drink.

Click here to read more.

Pope Francis Denounces Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide

Pope Francis spoke on Feb 9 about the importance of providing the sick, elderly, and dying with palliative care rather than euthanasia or assisted suicide.

“We must accompany people towards death, but not provoke death or facilitate assisted suicide,” Pope Francis said.

“I would point out that the right to care and treatment for all must always be prioritized, so that the weakest, particularly the elderly and the sick, are never discarded,” the pope continued. “Indeed, life is a right, not death, which must be welcomed, not administered. And this ethical principle applies to everyone, not just Christians or believers.”

Pope Frances has often commented on modern "throwaway culture" that treats the sick and elderly as if they no longer have worth. The practices of euthanasia assisted suicide, and abortion purposefully and immorally end the lives of human beings with inherent value.

Click here to read more.

6th Circuit Allows Federal Funding of Abortion Through Title X

One of the first actions of the Biden administration was to end President Trump's "Protect Life Rule," which prevented Title X family planning dollars from going to organizations that commit or refer for abortions. Now, as the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals denied a preliminary injunction that would have paused Biden's rule change, those funds will start going back to abortion organizations.

Additionally, Biden's rule change mandates that Title X recipients counsel and refer women for abortion.

12 attorneys general led by Ohio AG Dave Yost filed a lawsuit to block the rule change in October 2021. Yost wrote in a statement that the purpose of the Protect Life Rule "was to build walls to prevent the funding of abortion with taxpayer money – which remains illegal."

US District Judge Timothy Black did not agree, and he denied the states' request to temporarily pause the rules pending the results of the states' lawsuit. On February 8, 2022, the 6th Circuit followed suit; also denying a request for a preliminary injunction.

The next round of federal grants to Title X recipients will go out in March.

Click here to read more.

Vermont Legislators Approve Pro-Abortion Amendment to State Constitution

On Feb 8, the Vermont House of Representatives approved a proposed constitutional amendment that would make abortion a state right. Voters in the state will decide this November whether abortion rights should become a part of the constitution.

Proposal 5, also known as the "Reproductive Liberty Amendment" reads: "an individual’s right to personal reproductive autonomy is central to the liberty and dignity to determine one’s own life course and shall not be denied or infringed unless justified by a compelling State interest achieved by the least restrictive means.”

To get to this point, the amendment had to be passed by two consecutively elected legislatures.

Vermont Right to Life wrote that Proposal 5 “is reckless and irresponsible, dangerous and expensive as well as morally and ethically wrong. The lives of countless unborn babies will be placed at further risk of abortion if Proposal 5 is adopted.”

Click here to read more.

Court Reinstates Tennessee Law Banning Discriminatory Abortions

On Wednesday, Feb 2, the 6th US Circuit Court of Appeals reinstated a Tennessee law provision banning abortions decided on the basis of race, gender, or diagnosis with Down syndrome. Tennessee will be allowed to enforce its law while abortion businesses continue their lawsuit against the state.

Tennessee Right to Life President Stacy Dunn applauded the court's decision to reinstate the law. She told LifeNews, “Unborn children are the only group of people who can be discriminated against because of their race, gender or disability. This provision, in particular, defends the most vulnerable among us and upholds the virtue that all lives matter, regardless of condition or color.”

Dunn continued, “Tennessee Right to Life will continue to work with legislators to ensure that all unborn children are protected by law, but the Sixth Circuit has taken a huge step in allowing Tennesseans to end the violence to those who are targeted in our society.”

The law also contains a provision that requires all abortionists to perform an ultrasound prior to attempting an abortion. If the ultrasound finds a heartbeat, the abortionist would be forbidden from carrying out that abortion. This heartbeat provision is still being blocked by the courts.

Click here to read more.

FDA Data on Abortion Pill Safety is Flawed According to New Study

A study released in December by the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists (AAPLOG) found that the FDA's reporting of abortion pill complications had "significant" gaps. This study comes just after the FDA ended safety regulations governing the distribution of abortion pills.

When ending these regulations, the FDA cited its adverse event (AE) reporting data. The FDA claimed that the safety risks were low enough that the change was justified. The issue with this logic is that AE data was coming directly from the abortion pill's manufacturer, Danco Laboratories. Planned Parenthood would report AE's to Danco, and Danco would report events to the FDA.

This is problematic because the abortion pill manufacturer can control the information that the FDA receives regarding the safety of its product. It is also notable that Danco has not been required to report any complications other than death since 2016.

The AAPLOG study used 2009-2010 data from the FDA's reporting system, actual adverse event reports obtained through the Freedom of Information Act, and previous studies utilizing Planned Parenthood data. After going through the data, AAPLOG found that the number of AE's reported by Planned Parenthood was significantly higher than the number reported by Danco to the FDA.

The study found that 1,530 AE's were reported by Planned Parenthood in 2009 and 2010. In that same period, the FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) only recorded 664 AE's. This data suggests that over half of abortion pill complications reported by Planned Parenthood were not reported to the FDA.

Now, the FDA has ended regulations limiting the distribution of the abortion pill. In many states, it can legally be sent through the mail without first visiting a doctor in person. In making this decision, the FDA seemingly consulted flawed information.

Click here to read more.

Judge Again Blocks Ohio Law Requiring Burial or Cremation for Aborted Babies

For the second time, a judge in Ohio has issued a preliminary injunction blocking the enforcement of a new Ohio law that would require the remains of aborted children to be cremated or buried.

Hamilton County Common Pleas Judge Alison Hatheway issued the injunction on Feb 2. The injunction will prevent Ohio from enforcing its law until a lawsuit against the Ohio Department of Health is resolved.

The law would have been enforceable on Feb 8 if Judge Hatheway did not issue another injunction.

Ohio Right to Life President Mike Gonidakis issued the following statement:

Requiring the broken bodies of abortion victims to be humanely buried is simply common decency. The abortion industry’s desire to deny the innocent unborn even the right to a proper burial reveals where their allegiances lie: not with basic decency, but with their bottom line. Regardless of all obstacles thrown in our way, Pro-Life Ohio will never cease our advocacy until the dignity of every precious and irreplaceable human life is both respected and protected under law.

Click here to read more. 

Report Shows Texas Heartbeat Act Reduced Abortions by 60%

The Texas Health and Human Services Committee (HHSC) released a new report showing that the state's abortion rate has dropped significantly following the implementation of the Texas Heartbeat Act.

The HHSC report showed that 5,404 abortions occurred in August 2021. In September, the month the Heartbeat Act took effect, there were 2,197 abortions. The daily number of abortions in Texas has dropped from about 160 to about 70. Texas Right to Life estimates that the law has saved 15,000 babies since it took effect.

“The success of the Texas Heartbeat Act is embodied by every child saved. For over 150 days, our work has saved an estimated 100 babies per day,” TRTL Media & Communication director Kimberlyn Schwartz said. “Our impact is only just beginning as more states seek to replicate our success and as we look to the Mississippi case that could overturn Roe this summer.”

Click here to read more.

Study finds Men have Significant Role in Decision to Abort

A new study by Lifeway Research found that 38% of men claimed to have the most influence on their girlfriend or wife's decision to abort.

The study surveyed 1,000 men “who had a female partner get an abortion and knew of their significant other’s pregnancy before their baby was terminated.” Of the men surveyed 74% said that their partner spoke with them before having an abortion.

38% of men reported that they had the most influence on the decision to abort, 18% said that it was a medical professional, and only 14% of men said that the mother had the most influence on the decision. 4% of men said that an abortion provider had the most influence on the decision.

The study also analyzed the positions that men took when speaking with their female partners about abortion. 42% of men said that they "strongly urged" or "suggested" that the mother get an abortion. 31% said that they did not give her any advice. Only 27% of men "strongly urged" or "suggested" that she not have an abortion.

Click here to read more.

New Report Concludes Preborn Children Could Feel Pain at 8 Weeks

photo credit: Andrew Malone / Flickr

A peer-reviewed report published in December 2021 concludes that unborn children are likely capable of feeling pain as early as eight weeks gestation. The report goes as far as to suggest that denying fetal pain begins during the embryonic stage "is no longer tenable."

The new study is Dr. Bridget Thill's "Fetal Pain in the First Trimester" published in Linacre Quarterly. In his report, he considered research from medical journals published from 1936 through 2021.

Thill's examination of the research gave him five pieces of evidence that led him to the conclusion that unborn children feel pain within the first trimester:

• “The neural pathways for pain perception via the cortical subplate are present as early as 12 weeks gestation, and via the thalamus as early as 7-8 weeks gestation.”
• “The cortex is not necessary for pain to be experienced.”
• “Consciousness is mediated by subcortical structures, such as the thalamus and brainstem, which begin to develop during the first trimester.”
• “The neurochemicals in utero do not cause fetal unconsciousness.”
• “The use of fetal analgesia suppresses the hormonal, physiologic, and behavioral responses to pain, avoiding the potential for both short- and long-term sequelae.”

Click here to read more.

New IL Bill Would Give Public Health Department the Power to put Unvaccinated in Forced Isolation

Rep Deb Conroy (D-46)

UPDATE: HB4640 did not receive a vote on Feb 2, and it remains in the House Human Services Committee.

---Original article below---

A new Illinois bill introduced by Rep Deb Conroy (D-46) could put those unwilling to receive COVID-19 vaccines in isolation camps.

HB 4640's text reads:

To prevent the spread of a dangerously contagious or infectious disease, the [Public Health] Department may, pursuant to the provisions of subsection (c) of this Section, isolate or quarantine persons whose refusal to undergo observation and monitoring results in uncertainty regarding whether he or she has been exposed to or is infected with a dangerously contagious or infectious disease or otherwise poses a danger to the public's health.

Additionally, HB 4640 would create a data collection network between state and local governments and would grant the state "emergency access to medical or health information, records, or data" including electronic health records.

Many pro-life advocates object to the currently-available COVID-19 vaccines for conscience reasons. All of the currently-available vaccines were tested and/or manufactured with the use of cell lines harvested from aborted babies. For this reason, pro-life advocates would likely be disproportionately targeted for "isolation or quarantine" if state officials deem that their refusal to take COVID-19 vaccines "poses a danger to public health."

As of Monday evening, over 4700 people had filed witness slips opposing this legislation. Witness slips can be filed at this link.

The House Human Services Committee is scheduled to hear this bill on Wed. Feb 2 at 9AM.

Click here to read more.

New Federal Bill would Create Tax Credit for Unborn Children

Pro-life legislators in the US House and Senate recently introduced a bill that would help ease financial burdens on pregnant mothers by allowing them to claim tax credits for their unborn children.

The Child Tax Credit for Pregnant Moms Act of 2022 was introduced on Friday, Jan 28. The bill would allow mothers to claim up to $2,000 in tax credits by retroactively claiming unborn children who were later born alive, miscarried, or stillborn. In cases when mothers choose adoption, the biological mother and the child's adoptive guardian would split the tax credit.

The legislation was introduced by Sen. Steve Daines (R-MT), Rep. Jason Smith (R-MO), and Rep. Doug Lamborn (R-CO).

“Expecting parents begin providing and preparing for their child the minute they learn they’re having a baby. The child tax credit should reflect the fact that unborn children are children, too,” Sen. Daines told The Daily Signal. “From prenatal care to stocking up on baby supplies, this tax relief will help parents prepare for the arrival of their baby.”

Click here to read more.