Mexico City Policy

Parnell Supported The Mexico City Policy

Parnell Supported The Born Alive Act And Supported The Mexico City Policy. According to Parnell’s Senate campaign website, “I will strongly support pieces of legislation like the Born Alive Act, and believe Joe Biden’s decision to revoke the Mexico City policy undermines our moral leadership worldwide.” [Sean Parnell For Senate – Issues, Viewed 9/1/21]

Mexico City Policy Required Foreign NGOs To Certify They Would Not Perform Or Promote Abortion In ORder To REceive Funding From The U.S. Government

The Mexico City Policy Required Foreign NGOs To Certify They Will Not ‘Perform Or Actively Promote Abortion As A Method Of Family Planning’ In Order To Receive U.S. Government Global Family Planning Assistance. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, “First announced in 1984 by the Reagan administration, the policy has been rescinded and reinstated by subsequent administrations along party lines and has now been in effect for 19 of the past 34 years. The policy requires foreign non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to certify that they will not ‘perform or actively promote abortion as a method of family planning’ using funds with any source (including non-U.S. funds) as a condition for receiving U.S. government global family planning assistance and, as of Jan. 23, 2017, most other U.S. global health assistance.” [Kaiser Family Foundation, 8/15/19]

The Mexico City Policy Was Also Referred To As The ‘Global Gag Rule.’ According to Human Rights Watch, “This policy is also widely known as the ‘Global Gag Rule’ due to the restrictions it places on how organizations use their own non-US government funds, including through limiting conversations that health providers can have with their patients and preventing them from pressing for legal change in their own countries.” [Human Rights Watch, 2/14/18]

2017: Trump Implemented A Plan To Expand The Global Gag Rule On Abortion

Trump Implemented A Plan To Expand The Global Gag Rule On Abortion. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, “The Administration’s more recent extension of the policy to include any financial support (health or otherwise) provided by foreign NGOs for any purpose to other foreign NGOs that perform or actively promote abortion as a method of family planning4 is likely to encompass significant additional funding.” [Kaiser Family Foundation, 8/15/19]

The Rule Expanded To Ban Aid To Foreign Groups That Support Other Foreign Groups That Promote Or Provide Abortions

The Global Gag Rule Expanded To Ban Aid To Foreign Groups That Support Other Foreign Groups That Promote Or Provide Abortions. According to NBC News, “The Trump administration is expanding a ban on U.S. aid to foreign groups that promote or provide abortions to include those who support others who do, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced Tuesday. ‘We will enforce a strict prohibition on back-door funding schemes and end runs around our policy,’ Pompeo said. ‘American taxpayer dollars will not be used to underwrite abortions’ […] Pompeo said the ban will now extend to those foreign NGOs that provide financial support to other groups who provide abortion services or counseling.” [NBC News, 3/26/19]

The New Terms Of The Global Gag Rule Applied To $8.8. Billion In Foreign Aid. According to the Guardian, “The Trump administration on Monday significantly expanded a Reagan-era policy banning foreign aid to international healthcare providers who discuss abortion or advocate for abortion rights, in a move critics fear will jeopardize efforts to fight diseases such as malaria, HIV/Aids, and the Zika virus. The new terms of the ban will apply to $8.8bn in existing foreign aid provided by the state department, USAid, and the Department of Defense – dwarfing the $600m in programming that fell under the ban during previous administrations.” [The Guardian, 5/15/17]

Critics Argued That The Broader Policy Would Significantly Cut Aid To Groups Combatting Public Health Crises

Critics Argued That The Expanded Mexico City Policy Would Significantly Cut Aid To Groups Combatting Public Health Crises. According to the Guardian, “Critics feared the broader policy could significantly cut aid to groups combating the types of infectious diseases that have plagued poorer countries. ‘There is no indication that the Trump administration has conducted any assessment of the impact of the expanded global gag rule,’ said Serra Sippel, the president of the Center for Health and Gender Equity. ‘For example, how will this expansion impact prevention of the spread of HIV or Zika, especially given the role of contraceptives in prevention efforts?’” [The Guardian, 5/15/17]

2021: Biden Rescinded The Mexico City Policy

2021: Biden Rescinded The Mexico City Policy. According to the Wall Street Journal, “Mr. Biden on Thursday issued a ‘presidential memorandum to protect and expand access to comprehensive reproductive health care,’ as part of a series of health-care-related actions. Among its effects will be to reverse a rule known as the ‘Mexico City policy”—or, to critics, the “global gag rule.’” [Wall Street Journal, 1/28/21]