Bioethics Public Policy Report: February 17, 2026
State by State
In New York, a jury awarded a detransitioned woman $2 million in damages after having been pressured into a double mastectomy when she was a teenager. In Fox Varian v. Kenneth Einhorn, PhD, et al. the jury found that the doctors and psychologists ignored the applicable procedures and standards of care when the then-teenager was consulting them. For further information, click here.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed suit against a nurse practitioner whose organization, “Her Safe Harbor,” was shipping chemical abortion drugs across state lines into Texas, in violation of Texas state law. For further information, click here.
Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger signed a ballot initiative for the upcoming elections in November, the “Right to Reproductive Freedom Amendment,” which, if passed, would establish a state constitutional right to abortion throughout all stages of pregnancy, with limited restrictions. For further information, click here.
Federal Courts
A high school pro-life club has petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court to hear their case after having been censored from putting out a poster with an image of pro-life activists holding signs that said, “Defund Planned Parenthood.” The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals had upheld the censorship, hence the appeal to the Supreme Court. For further information, click here.
Right to Life Michigan, among other pro-life groups, filed suit in federal court against Michigan for a new state law that would prohibit discrimination on the basis of “termination of pregnancy.” The Alliance Defending Freedom, representing the organizations, argued that the law violates the pro-life organizations’ First Amendment rights. For further information, click here.
National
The American Medical Association (AMA) and the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) modified their positions on “gender-affirming care” for minors, aligning with more recent recommendations to delay surgical interventions until adulthood, amid increasing legal and medical scrutiny, including the jury verdict in the abovementioned Varian v. Einhorn. The ASPS specifically noted the “considerable uncertainty as to the long-term efficacy” of surgical interventions. For further information, click here and here.
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced that federal funds will no longer be used for research involving the fetal tissue of aborted babies. The policy will apply to all NIH grants, cooperative agreements, transaction awards, research and development contracts, and the NIH Intramural Research Program. For further information, click here.
A national campaign has recently launched to overturn the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges, which legalized same-sex “marriage” across the nation. The campaign, called “Greater Than,” launched by non-profit Them Before Us, focuses on the effects of same-sex “marriage” on the children of such unions. To see the website for “Greater Than,” click here. For further information, click here.
The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops released a statement in support of the federal government’s expansion of the Mexico City Policy, which prohibits the use of federal funds for non-governmental organizations that promote or perform abortion overseas. The Policy now extends to non-governmental organizations that promote or perform services related to gender ideology. To read the bishops’ statement, click here. For further information, click here.
The U.S. Department of Education released new guidance reminding public schools to allow expressions of faith, including prayer, in public schools, so long as the school itself does not engage in religious activities or speech as an institution. For further information, click here.
The Pregnant Students’ Rights Act failed to pass in the Senate after passing in the House of Representatives. The Act would have required colleges to provide information to pregnant college students about how to bring their pregnancies to term while still remaining in school. For further information, click here.
International
A Canadian member of Parliament introduced a bill that would repeal a part of the Medical Aid in Dying (MAID) program that would prohibit from participating in the program those whose sole basis for applying to the program is mental illness. The bill has the support of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops, and it comes as experts warn that there seems to be a link between MAID and an increase in organ donations. To read the bishops’ statement, click here. For further information, click here and here.
In the United Kingdom, a Christian woman who was arrested and criminally charged for silently praying in front of an abortion clinic pleaded “not guilty” in her first appearance. Her legal counsel is arguing that her conduct did not actually violate the “buffer-zone” law, as it is written. For further information, click here.
Of Note
Bishop Burbidge of the Diocese of Arlington, Virginia, issued a pastoral letter on the mental health crisis today in America. To read the letter, click here.
The Diocese of Peoria announced that Ven. Fulton Sheen would be beatified at some point this year, as the Diocese works out the details of the beatification with Rome. For further information, click here.
President Trump announced his intention to hold an event on May 17, 2026, entitled “Rededicate 250: National Jubilee of Prayer, Praise, and Thanksgiving,” which will focus on rededicating the United States as “under God.” To read the proclamation, click here.
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