January 1, Trump Judges Condemn California Medical Speech Mandate

Wyatt’s Take

• Trump-nominated judges on the 9th Circuit say California is pushing forced viewpoints in medicine.
• Dissenters argue doctors shouldn’t be forced to deliver state-approved ideologies.
• Case could head to the Supreme Court, with big impacts for free speech.

The 9th Circuit Court refused to revisit a challenge against California making implicit bias training mandatory for medical professionals.

Trump’s appointed judges strongly disagreed with letting the state force these ideological courses.

“state-sanctioned groupthink.”

They argued California’s law turns private speech into government-approved messaging, which could silence differing views in healthcare.

“A proper analysis—as prescribed by the Supreme Court, our own court’s prior cases, and our sister circuits—reveals that California’s prior CME regulations did not meaningfully express or shape messages through CME courses,”

The dissent stated.

The state doesn’t directly write course content, but mandates a particular message by requiring examples of implicit bias in medical decisions.

Judge VanDyke wrote.

“The Medical Board of California’s regulations otherwise exert very little control over CME instructors’ messages.”

The dissent warned this could make professionals afraid to speak freely or challenge the state’s narrative.

Tung said

“commandeer a vast majority of course providers … to proselytize its message,”

instead of hiring its own staff to spread such views.

Pacific Legal Foundation, representing doctors challenging the law, says they may take the fight to the Supreme Court.

They believe the ruling flips First Amendment protections upside down, forcing all instructors to speak with one voice.

The ruling especially targets medical bias training, with California demanding instructors give certain viewpoints while staying out of other course content.

This creates what dissenters call a

“perception of uniformity”

and punishes those who don’t comply.

Read more here

Wyatt Matters

When government controls what workers can say, it risks smothering real debate. Free speech in fields like medicine matters for everyone, not just experts.