Biden Just Reversed a Trump-Era Domestic Gag Rule on Abortion
This week, the Biden administration reversed a Trump-era rule that significantly limited abortion access in the U.S. The domestic gag rule on abortion, reenacted in 2019, barred clinics that receive federal funding under the Title X family planning program from offering abortions or even providing patients with referrals for abortions. The U.S. Department of Health and Humans Services (HHS) under Biden just issued a final rule officially revoking that ban, which had caused a number of clinics to lose their Title X funding and in many cases shut down altogether.
The policy revision, effective November 8, is expected to help improve access to sexual and reproductive health care—especially in low-income communities—by increasing the number of clinics that opt into receiving Title X federal funds. Title X funds go toward a variety of family planning and preventive health services (like birth control, STI screenings, and cancer screenings), but not abortion services, as SELF has explained.
“This rule is a step forward for family planning care as it aims to strengthen and restore our nation’s Title X program,” HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra said in a news release. “Our nation’s family planning clinics play a critical role in delivering health care, and today more than ever, we are making clear that access to quality family planning care includes accurate information and referrals—based on a patient’s needs and direction.”
The number of providers that opted out of the Title X program due to the rule—and may now rejoin as a result of its reversal—is huge. According to the Guttmacher Institute, the gag rule reduced the patient capacity of the national network of Title X–funded clinics by 46% overall—and by 90% to 100% in 10 states. Like many attacks on access to reproductive health care, the domestic gag rule disproportionately impacted socioeconomically disadvantaged individuals, rural communities, and people of color, because these individuals are more likely to seek care from Title X–funded clinics, as SELF has reported.
https://www.self.com/story/biden-reverses-domestic-gag-rule-on-abortion
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