President Trump reinstated the Global Gag Rule on May 15, an order that has been on-again, off-again depending on which political party is in power.
The rule bars international charities from promoting abortion as a method of family planning. Even a conversation with a physician about abortion could be deemed illegal under the law.
The “Global Gag Rule,” as it’s called by critics of the statute, prohibits U.S. money from funding international family-planning clinics that promote abortion. It also outlaws counseling or referrals about abortion services.
President Ronald Reagan was first to sign the rule in 1984. Since then Republican presidents kept the rule in place, while Democrat presidents – including Barack Obama – revoked it.
It affects approximately $8.8 billion in funding that had been earmarked to the Department of State, the U.S. Agency for International Development, and the Department of Defense for global health assistance.
Global health assistance includes funding for international health programs, such as those for HIV/AIDS, maternal and child health, malaria, global health security, family planning and reproductive health.
However, under the rule, which Trump renamed "Protecting Life in Global Health Assistance,” there’s a catch.
While foreign NGOs – non-government organizations – could receive global health assistance awards, they first have to agree to the terms of Protecting Life in Global Health Assistance.
The State Department announced it would stand by the new policy, issuing this statement:
“All foreign NGOs will have the opportunity to receive global health assistance awards if they indicate their agreement to abide by the terms of Protecting Life in Global Health Assistance by accepting the provisions in their award.”
The National Abortion Rights Action League (NARAL) stated that Trump’s action showed the president was "yet again throwing women under the bus.”
“This action will take critical reproductive care away from women in the world’s most unstable environments,” NARAL added.
