Trump Administration Implements Gag Rule on Funding for Clinics under Title X

According to an organization that functions to stop unexpected pregnancies among the populations of the US, almost 900 health clinics focused on promoting women's health all over the United States of America had not been granted with federal funding after President Donald Trump and his administration's execution of the domestic gag rule to a campaign on federal family planning called Title X.

Based on the records of the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health, half of the Title X patient population comprised of women from different races and a third of this group of patients are Latinas.

The insufficiency of funding for this group of people can gravely affect the services offered by clinics from all over the country focusing on reproductive health.

The reproductive health services which may be affected by President Trump's domestic gag rule are breast cancer screening, HIV testing, and birth control. This can affect the 8.7 million female population of the United States of America.

According to Paloma Zuleta, the media director of Power to Decide, a drop on the funding given to clinics for women's reproductive health can gravely affect the lives of low-income women immigrants in the United States of America. The domestic gag rule defies the reason for the implementation of Title X which is to provide assistance to the female low-income earners.

According to Zuleta, cutting the fund given to clinics for promoting women's reproductive health may affect its operations such as the funding used by clinics to be opened for a longer time in the day may reduce the number hours it can operate within the day. This will result in a reduction in the number of hours where female low-income earners can get access to open clinics throughout the day.

The US gag rule on funding for clinics under Title X was implemented two months ago. It contains the rule that clinics will not anymore be granted with funds under Title X where abortions are being administered. It also prohibits funding to clinics where its staff promotes or refer patients to other health clinics or centers that conduct abortion operations.

The reason for the issuance of the US gag rule on funding for clinics under Title X is in accordance with the Hyde Amendment which does not allow the inclusion of health services funding for operations involving abortion to low-income earners.

Affected people are protesting on the implementation of the domestic gag rule. Fifteen states had already lost the funding under Title X. The health centers that were receiving Title X funding were in the states of Oregon, Washington, Utah, Vermont, and Maine. These states had to stop some of its women's reproductive health campaigns because of the halt of the funding under Title X.

The effect of the US gag rule on funding for clinics under Title X on the overall population is a reduction of preventive services for incurable and other diseases specific to women such as cervical cancer.

According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, these services are important to the Latin population which makes up the majority population in the United States of America with the most number of cervical cancer cases.