The Office of Population Affairs at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced on July 11, 2019 the award of $13,566,000 for 29 grants to organizations to replicate programs already proven effective for reducing teenage pregnancy and behavioral risk factors leading to teenage pregnancy.
California Family Council previously reported back in February of this year how the Trump administration had finalized a rule designed to redirect as much as $60 million taxpayer funded dollars away from the nation’s largest abortion provider.
Under the previous rule, Planned Parenthood was receiving in excess of $50 million taxpayer dollars in Title X funds. Title X is a federal grant program administered by the Department of Health and Human Services that includes roughly $286 million which it distributes to family healthcare centers. Planned Parenthood receives roughly $50-$60 million of this money. The “Protect Life Rule” filed with the Office of Management and Budget and finalized in late February of 2019 will cut Planned Parenthood and other abortion provider’s access to Title X funding unless it separates abortion from the other services that it claims to provide.
This prompted a lawsuit from Planned Parenthood, and the full 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals originally blocked the Trump administration from going forward with defunding Planned Parenthood while the case is still being considered. However, on July 11th, the entire 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the Trump administration’s defunding in a 7-4 decision.
Now the Trump administration is wasting no time in taking steps to send funds to instead support pro life pregnancy care centers to help pro life Americans make positive, life-affirming decisions with regards to their sexual health.
The press release issued by the Office of Population Affairs stated:
Funded grantees will replicate programs that have been proven effective through rigorous evaluation to reduce teenage pregnancy, behavioral risk factors underlying teenage pregnancy, or other associated risk factors. Grantees will identify how to bring effective programs to scale and build the knowledge base on understanding what elements/components/factors are important to program success. The 29 new grantees will implement effective programs in communities that have demonstrated great need across 15 States, including Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Mississippi, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas, and West Virginia.
The release also contained a list of the organizations benefiting from the millions of dollars in grants. $1.5 million of the funds are going to the Obria Group, the Women’s Care Center of Erie County, and Bethany Christian Services – all pro life pregnancy care centers.
HHS spokesman Mark Vafiades told the New York Times the Trump administration wants to support a program that “provides youth with the information and skills they need to avoid the many risks associated with teen sex.”
