AAPLOG Colorado

One year ago, it became clear that efforts were underway to launch a petition to codify Colorado’s progressive abortion laws into the state constitution and to move toward taxpayer funding.   In July 2023, three friends, Catherine Wheeler, MD, OB/GYN, Tom Perille, MD and President of Colorado Pro-life Democrats, and Wendy Smith, ACNP-retired, met to brainstorm over efforts to block this initiative.  One of the barriers had been a fractioned approach, not only among pro-life organizations, (who are now uniting their efforts), but there was a critical need build a stronger coalition of pro-life medical providers within Colorado.  We needed be able to identify these providers and to build an army of medical professionals who could speak to the science and facts surrounding life, who would testify against pro-abortion laws, educate their peers and the public within their sphere of influence, and perhaps most importantly, those who would be willing to write Letters to the Editors, opinion pieces, and articles about life and our egregious abortion laws.  Our hope was that AAPLOG CO’s efforts would be instrumental in educating about Initiative 89 (to put unrestricted abortion in the state constitution and removing the ban on tax-payor funding) and exemplify a model for healthcare professionals in other states in countering the abortion activists.

We wrote a proposal to AAPLOG to see if they would be willing to establish a state chapter with us.  Dr. Christina Francis joined us for three days in September 2024 to meet with groups of interested medical professionals (MDs, Nurse Practitioners, Physician Assistants, Medical Students, Pharmacists and nurses) in three different geographic areas:  Denver, Grand Junction, and Colorado Springs.  Following her visit the board of AAPLOG agreed to make Colorado their first chapter.

One year later

Over the past year a lot of work has been done and a lot remains to be done.  Since AAPLOG CO officially launched in April, members have participated in AAPLOG media/expert witness training, networked with other pro-life organizations, such as the Christian Medical & Dental Association and Catholic Medical Association, and AAPLOG CO represents the medical community as part of Pro-life Colorado, which is a coalition of over 50 pro-life organizations joining resources and expertise in order to prevent the abortion laws of Colorado from being enshrined into the state constitution.  More and more professionals are hearing about AAPLOG CO and we now have an email list of over 400 medical professionals and medical students from across Colorado.  Several of our members have hosted and participated in public educational programs, such as:  Let’s Talk About Life in Monument CO and The Great Debate, a mock abortion debate in Denver, with more programs planned in August and September.  Drs. Wheeler and Perille participated in weekly podcasts with Life Decisions through the Spring.  Dr. Wheeler was also interviewed for the AAPLOG podcast.  Members of our chapter have published Letters to the Editors in local media outlets such as the Colorado Springs Gazette, the Denver Gazette (paper and digital), Colorado Politics, the Colorado Sun and others.   Dr. Wheeler represents our chapter on the Board of AAPLOG and participates in the medical advisory board for Save the Storks.  We host educational Zoom meetings for members every other Monday evening, presenting topics on writing, how to host an educational program, neonatology and care of premature babies, psychological issues surrounding abortion, building relationships with editors and legislators, etc.

It has been a very busy, very productive year and as a result AAPLOG CO has made its presence known.  We are becoming a resource for the pro-life community as well as a force in challenging the pro-choice advocate narrative.