Senator Greg Schmedes (R-SD 19) represents pieces of Bernalillo, Santa Fe, Sandoval, & Torrance Counties and actively works against the LGBTQ community in New Mexico. In his time in the House and now the Senate, he has introduced and sponsored many discriminatory bills. And he just doesn't stop.
Schmedes is a trained doctor and surgeon when he’s not serving in the Roundhouse and is leading the charge on SB 323 this session, the so-called “Healthcare Protections Act.” But it doesn’t protect New Mexicans. You want to know what this bill does? SB 323 would write into law that health care workers can openly discriminate and withhold care from LGBTQ individuals and families - no matter how critical that healthcare may be.
His bill would allow medical staff to refuse almost any kind of care, to any person, and the patient would have no recourse if they were harmed - and we have to stop it.
This bill puts the “right to discriminate” above the healthcare needs of the patient, and doesn’t even require that the patient be directed to someone else who can help them.
Not only is Senator Schmedes sponsoring a bill that would harm communities across the state, he also has time to serve as the New Mexico Director of the American Academy of Medical Ethics. Sounds legit, right? Well - this “academy” equates homosexuality to alcoholism or substance abuse disorders and believes that homosexuality is unhealthy and leads to damaging consequences for patients. AAME believes that homosexuality “can be cured.”
Not only that, AAME also believes that individuals will lead “healthier and fulfilled lives” only if they identify with their biological sex. AAME is “concerned that efforts to compel healthcare professionals to affirm transgender ideology, provide medical legitimization for transgender psychology, or cooperate with requests for medical or surgical sex reassignment threaten professional integrity.”
They - and Senator Schmedes - literally believe that the integrity of the medical profession is best suited when providers are able to discriminate and harm their patients.
This is the kind of dangerous rhetoric and ideology that we’re up against in our fight for justice and progress.
Senator Schmedes and his fellow conservatives in the New Mexico legislature do not care about their constituents or building a better tomorrow for all of us - they are only concerned about preserving outdated power structures that hold our communities down.
Join EQNM by donating today and help us show Senator Schmedes that New Mexico will not stand for his hatred and antiquated ideals. Our state depends on us.
