Trump’s Title X Gag Rule Is a Public Health Crisis in the Making
The American Medical Association says Title X changes will require doctors to violate medical ethics
Late last month, the Trump administration finalized its domestic gag rule. The rule, which has been in the works since May 2018, would prevent clinics from receiving Title X funding if they provide abortions or even refer patients to doctors who can provide them. Title X, which funds family planning services and health care for low-income women and trans people, is a crucial part of the funding infrastructure for many abortion providers — especially Planned Parenthood, which sees 41 percent of Title X patients.
For those who follow reproductive rights, it was not hard to see how this would go: Planned Parenthood would likely sue to prevent the rule from going into effect, and it would likely go into effect anyway, given the conservative Supreme Court and the unfavorable legal precedent reproductive health advocates would be facing. The Planned Parenthood lawsuit has, indeed, come to pass. Yet something surprising has happened: The American Medical Association is also suing to block the rule. Their involvement stands to shift the terms of the debate so that we no longer view abortion restrictions as a conflict between anti-abortion and…
