Inspire has been actively engaging some of the world’s largest companies, making significant progress on issues of abortion, censorship and religious liberty, de-banking, Employee Resource Groups (ERGs), corporate charitable giving, DEI, and LGBT Activism.
The central theme that runs through Inspire’s shareholder advocacy work is to get companies to focus on their core products and services and stay out of divisive political issues that could expose them to customer and employee backlash and legal risk.
Abortion is a critical issue of our time and Inspire Investing has been working tirelessly to protect life. With over 60% of all abortions in the US being procured through the abortion pill, we have been leading the charge to keep some of the biggest pharmacies in the country like Costco, Walmart, Kroger, Albertson’s, and McKesson from selling the drug mifepristone.
Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022. In response, in 2023, the Biden Administration’s Food and Drug Administration (FDA) removed the in-person dispensing requirements for mifepristone and allowed pharmacies to dispense the drug to anyone with a prescription even though the FDA’s own label on the drug indicates that hospitalizations increase 300% with no in‐person doctor visit and roughly 1 in 25 women who take the drug will end up in the emergency room. In early 2024, CVS and Walgreens made public statements that they had started to dispense the pill while other retailers indicated they were still deciding. In June 2024, the Supreme Court made a ruling (FDA v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine) temporarily allowing pharmacies to continue to dispense the drug, but the Court decided the case on procedural grounds and left unresolved whether the current system of dispensing and distributing the drug is legal. For example, the Comstock Act prohibits dispensing or distributing the drug by mail and the Trump administration is likely to enforce this. After the ruling, in July, the NYC Comptroller started pressuring major pharmacies to sell the pill. In October 2024, Idaho Attorney General Raúl Labrador joined AGs in Missouri and Kansas in suing the FDA over their illegal efforts to dangerously expand access to mifepristone. In January 2025, the judge ruled that the case can continue.
Inspire’s work on mifepristone initially focused on Costco. We reached out last spring asking the company to clarify its plans to sell the abortion pill. The company confirmed that they had “yet to see any material demand for mifepristone from our members,” but they still said they were evaluating whether to become certified. After not receiving a definitive response, we mobilized over 9,000 investors, members, and concerned citizens to sign a petition to Costco’s CEO asking him to consider the legal, moral, economic, and political controversy surrounding the dispensing of mifepristone.
After the NYC Comptroller sent letters in July to Costco, Walmart, Albertson’s, Kroger and McKesson, our engagement on the issue expanded beyond Costco. Inspire worked with Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) to mobilize a coalition of asset managers and financial professionals representing over $100 billion in assets to send a response which was widely covered in the media. We also initiated a calling and email campaign to the companies, focused primarily on Costco. Our friends at The Association of Mature American Citizens (AMAC) joined us in our efforts with their own email campaign to Costco, whiles other organizations like Live Action, Right to Life Idaho, and Idaho Family Policy Center helped spread the word. In addition, fourteen state treasurers also joined Inspire’s efforts by sending their own letters, emphasizing the risks of entering this controversial business.
Although our work certainly made waves and mobilized thousands of concerned citizens, the responses from the companies were far from adequate. The companies either didn’t respond, said they were still researching the issue, or, in the case of Kroger, seemed to indicate they were moving forward with becoming certified. As a result, we filed shareholder resolutions at Walmart, Kroger, and McKesson, and plan to file at Costco as well.
In January 2025, Inspire met with executives at Walmart. We started the meeting by thanking the company for de-politicizing its business by rolling back its Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs which was the main request of another letter we sent to the company in 2024. Regarding abortion, we received verbal confirmation that Walmart is not selling the abortion drug and has no current plans to become certified. While we expressed appreciation and commended the company for taking this stance, we have asked Walmart to make a public statement to this effect. We also talked to the company about whether abortion would be covered in its health travel benefit plan and are awaiting clarification. Given that Walmart is the largest employer in the US, we are hopeful that these decisions on DEI and abortion will be a catalyst for other companies to make the right decision and not needlessly insert themselves into thorny political issues that are better left for the ballot box.
In December 2024, Inspire filed a shareholder resolution at Kroger asking for a report on the risks to the company from selling mifepristone. We filed the resolution because their August 2024 response letter to us strongly indicated that the company was planning to move forward with becoming certified. At the time, we expressed our disappointment at their decision. In February 2025, similar to Walmart, the company informed us that it is not selling the drug in its pharmacies. We thanked the company for taking a stance on an issue that is fraught with financial, legal, and moral risk, and asked for commitment to not proceed with plans to become certified. We are awaiting clarification from the company.
Inspire Investing’s faith-based investing advocacy is driving significant change in corporate America, ensuring that companies focus on their core mission rather than divisive political activism. Through shareholder resolutions, investor mobilization, legal action, and direct engagement, Inspire is holding corporations accountable and promoting business practices rooted in transparency, fairness, and ethical values.
We will provide a full analysis of our impact in July or August, after this year’s engagement season comes to a close.
Tim Schwarzenberger, CFA is a Portfolio Manager with Inspire Investing and has over 20 years of industry experience. He previously served as Managing Director at Christian Brothers Investment Services (CBIS), where he was an integral member of the Investment Team responsible for implementing the firm’s strategy development, portfolio construction, and Catholic investing initiatives.
Inspire has been actively engaging some of the world’s largest companies, making significant progress on issues of abortion, censorship and religious liberty, de-banking, Employee Resource Groups (ERGs), corporate charitable giving, DEI, and LGBT Activism.
The central theme that runs through Inspire’s shareholder advocacy work is to get companies to focus on their core products and services and stay out of divisive political issues that could expose them to customer and employee backlash and legal risk.
Abortion is a critical issue of our time and Inspire Investing has been working tirelessly to protect life. With over 60% of all abortions in the US being procured through the abortion pill, we have been leading the charge to keep some of the biggest pharmacies in the country like Costco, Walmart, Kroger, Albertson’s, and McKesson from selling the drug mifepristone.
Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022. In response, in 2023, the Biden Administration’s Food and Drug Administration (FDA) removed the in-person dispensing requirements for mifepristone and allowed pharmacies to dispense the drug to anyone with a prescription even though the FDA’s own label on the drug indicates that hospitalizations increase 300% with no in‐person doctor visit and roughly 1 in 25 women who take the drug will end up in the emergency room. In early 2024, CVS and Walgreens made public statements that they had started to dispense the pill while other retailers indicated they were still deciding. In June 2024, the Supreme Court made a ruling (FDA v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine) temporarily allowing pharmacies to continue to dispense the drug, but the Court decided the case on procedural grounds and left unresolved whether the current system of dispensing and distributing the drug is legal. For example, the Comstock Act prohibits dispensing or distributing the drug by mail and the Trump administration is likely to enforce this. After the ruling, in July, the NYC Comptroller started pressuring major pharmacies to sell the pill. In October 2024, Idaho Attorney General Raúl Labrador joined AGs in Missouri and Kansas in suing the FDA over their illegal efforts to dangerously expand access to mifepristone. In January 2025, the judge ruled that the case can continue.
Inspire’s work on mifepristone initially focused on Costco. We reached out last spring asking the company to clarify its plans to sell the abortion pill. The company confirmed that they had “yet to see any material demand for mifepristone from our members,” but they still said they were evaluating whether to become certified. After not receiving a definitive response, we mobilized over 9,000 investors, members, and concerned citizens to sign a petition to Costco’s CEO asking him to consider the legal, moral, economic, and political controversy surrounding the dispensing of mifepristone.
After the NYC Comptroller sent letters in July to Costco, Walmart, Albertson’s, Kroger and McKesson, our engagement on the issue expanded beyond Costco. Inspire worked with Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) to mobilize a coalition of asset managers and financial professionals representing over $100 billion in assets to send a response which was widely covered in the media. We also initiated a calling and email campaign to the companies, focused primarily on Costco. Our friends at The Association of Mature American Citizens (AMAC) joined us in our efforts with their own email campaign to Costco, whiles other organizations like Live Action, Right to Life Idaho, and Idaho Family Policy Center helped spread the word. In addition, fourteen state treasurers also joined Inspire’s efforts by sending their own letters, emphasizing the risks of entering this controversial business.
Although our work certainly made waves and mobilized thousands of concerned citizens, the responses from the companies were far from adequate. The companies either didn’t respond, said they were still researching the issue, or, in the case of Kroger, seemed to indicate they were moving forward with becoming certified. As a result, we filed shareholder resolutions at Walmart, Kroger, and McKesson, and plan to file at Costco as well.
In January 2025, Inspire met with executives at Walmart. We started the meeting by thanking the company for de-politicizing its business by rolling back its Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs which was the main request of another letter we sent to the company in 2024. Regarding abortion, we received verbal confirmation that Walmart is not selling the abortion drug and has no current plans to become certified. While we expressed appreciation and commended the company for taking this stance, we have asked Walmart to make a public statement to this effect. We also talked to the company about whether abortion would be covered in its health travel benefit plan and are awaiting clarification. Given that Walmart is the largest employer in the US, we are hopeful that these decisions on DEI and abortion will be a catalyst for other companies to make the right decision and not needlessly insert themselves into thorny political issues that are better left for the ballot box.
In December 2024, Inspire filed a shareholder resolution at Kroger asking for a report on the risks to the company from selling mifepristone. We filed the resolution because their August 2024 response letter to us strongly indicated that the company was planning to move forward with becoming certified. At the time, we expressed our disappointment at their decision. In February 2025, similar to Walmart, the company informed us that it is not selling the drug in its pharmacies. We thanked the company for taking a stance on an issue that is fraught with financial, legal, and moral risk, and asked for commitment to not proceed with plans to become certified. We are awaiting clarification from the company.
Inspire Investing’s faith-based investing advocacy is driving significant change in corporate America, ensuring that companies focus on their core mission rather than divisive political activism. Through shareholder resolutions, investor mobilization, legal action, and direct engagement, Inspire is holding corporations accountable and promoting business practices rooted in transparency, fairness, and ethical values.
We will provide a full analysis of our impact in July or August, after this year’s engagement season comes to a close.
