Warren, Hassan, Chu, DeGette, and Lee Call for Restoring Full Family Planning Funding by Rescinding Former Administration’s Title X Policies
Washington, D.C. – Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Senator Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.), Representative Judy Chu (D-Calif.), Representative Diana DeGette (D-Colo.), and Representative Barbara Lee (D-Calif.) led more than 150 of their colleagues in urging the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to rescind the former administration’s Title X Family Planning Program (Title X) policies that severely curtailed access to vital family planning and sexual health services.
As directed by President Biden at the beginning of his presidency, HHS is undergoing a review of the Title X rules issued under the Trump administration. “We believe that this review will make clear that the changes made to the Title X program resulted in numerous harms to patients and community health, and that the COVID-19 pandemic necessitates immediate rescission of the current rule,” the lawmakers wrote.
Title X is the nation’s only dedicated source of federal funding for family planning services, and it is essential we restore the capacity of this vital program. After President Trump’s Title X rule was implemented, more than 1,000 health centers withdrew from the program--resulting in 844,083 fewer patients receiving Title X-funded services in 2019 than they did in 2018. In Massachusetts, only one Title X grantee remains in the program, and patients outside the greater-Boston area no longer have access to Title-X funded services.
“Rebuilding the Title X program, which cannot begin until the rule is rescinded, is one of the most important ways that the Biden administration can support access to family planning and other essential health care services during this challenging time for our country,” the lawmakers concluded.
As a champion of reproductive justice, Senator Warren has fought to ensure access to comprehensive family planning and sexual health services throughout her time in Congress.
Last month, Senators Warren, Cory Booker (D-N.J.), and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) led their colleagues in urging the Biden administration to establish an Office of Sexual and Reproductive Health and Wellbeing within the Domestic Policy Council to make comprehensive reproductive care a priority within the administration.
In May 2018, Senator Warren led more than 200 Members of Congress in expressing their opposition to the Title X Gag Rule. The senator also authored an op-ed for TIME opposing President Trump’s proposal.
In March 2019, Senators Warren, Hassan, and colleagues requested a Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Hearing to assess the impacts of the Title X Rule on restricting patient access to high-quality family planning services.
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