In a significant win for religious freedom, New York state has abandoned its nearly decade-long effort to force Christian organizations — including nuns, churches, and faith-based ministries — to fund abortions through employee health insurance plans.

For years, New York tried to compel ministries that serve everyone to provide and subsidize abortion coverage, even when it violated their deeply held moral beliefs. Thanks to persistent legal challenges and repeated interventions from the U.S. Supreme Court affirming First Amendment protections, the state finally backed down.

This outcome reinforces a fundamental truth: no government should coerce faith-based organizations to pay for practices they believe are morally wrong. When conscience and conviction are respected, our society upholds both human dignity and the authentic meaning of freedom.