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It may be August, and Congress may be in recess all month, and I may be on vacation all week, but this doesn’t mean there aren’t bad bills that need to be called out and opposed. This time I’m talking about the Conscience Protection Act introduced by Senator James Lankford (R-OK) and Congressman Jim Banks (R-IN). Lankford ran a large Baptist youth camp for fifteen years before becoming a congressman. Banks has an MBA from Grace College and Seminary. This bill is right up their alleys.

The bill would, in Senator Lankford’s words, “protect health care providers and insurance plans from government discrimination if they decline to participate in abortions. The Conscience Protection Act also provides a private right of action for victims of conscience discrimination because the Biden Administration refuses to enforce existing conscience protections.” In practice this means hospitals, doctors, nurses, orderlies, and even insurance companies can cite their personal religious beliefs in order to deny a patient care. Religion should never be allowed as a reason to refuse to provide necessary medical care.

If other healthcare workers are available this could just be an administrative problem for a hospital. However, if a doctor or nurse objects based on conscience grounds and they happen to be the only health care workers available when a woman needs an abortion to save her life, that life is at risk. In 10 states abortion is now banned except in that situation, but would the patient get lifesaving care from a pro-life doctor or nurse who very rarely sees this situation?

The federal regulations that govern conscience exemptions in health care facilities that receive federal funding (which is most of them) have changed with every president going back at least to George W. Bush. President Trump’s executive order came down on the side of allowing health care workers to claim religious exemptions. President Biden reversed that order. This law would put the right to claim a religious exemption into law, making it impossible for a President to just reverse it himself or herself. Please use this Action Alert ([link removed]) to tell your representatives to oppose the Conscience Protection Act.

Do the goals of the Conscience Protection Act mesh with the policy recommendations in Project 2025? ([link removed]) Of course they do. The word “conscience” shows up 32 times in the policy recommendations for the Department of Health and Human Services. “A robust respect for the sacred rights of conscience, both at HHS and among governments and institutions funded by it, increases choices for patients and program beneficiaries and furthers pluralism and tolerance. The Secretary must protect Americans’ civil rights by ensuring that HHS programs and activities follow the letter and spirit of religious freedom and conscience-protection laws.”

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With Congress in recess until September 9 and most members back home running for reelection, you may have an opportunity to attend a town hall meeting. You should go. Sometimes these events are advertised on social media, but you will definitely hear about them if you sign up for emails from your representatives. Find out what they have to say about things in a live setting. You might even get to ask a question. It doesn’t have to be about an issue you see here, but you can check our Action Alert page and our issues page for inspiration. You don’t have to say you are one of 77 million (and growing) nonreligious adults in America. There are plenty of reasons for everyone to support church-state separation.


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Scott MacConomy, Director of Policy ad Government Affairs at the Secular Coalition for America, wears a blue suit and stands with his arms crossed over his chest in front of the United States Capitol Building.

Your advocate,

Scott MacConomy
Director of Policy and Government Affairs
Secular Coalition for America
[email protected]
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The Secular Coalition for America works every day to defend the separation of religion and government and to fight anti-democratic ideologies like Christian nationalism. Your support for this work is vital.

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P.S. Please consider leaving a legacy gift to the Secular Coalition for America ([link removed]) . The protection of our secular values requires eternal vigilance.

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