US President Donald Trump on Friday (Jan 24) reinstated the “Mexico City Rule,” a long-standing Republican policy that bans US global health funding for foreign organisations involved in providing or promoting abortions. This move reverses key efforts by the erstwhile Joe Biden administration to expand access to abortion services.
Originally introduced during Republican president Ronald Reagan’s administration, the Mexico City Rule has been repeatedly revoked by Democratic presidents and reinstated by Republican presidents. Trump had previously restored the policy at the start of his first term, but his predecessor Joe Biden overturned it during his time in office.
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Trump signs executive order to enforce the Hyde Amendment
In yet another crackdown on abortions, Trump signed an executive order to enforce the Hyde Amendment, which had banned federal funding for these procedures since 1977.
The order also reverses several actions implemented by the Biden administration to increase access to abortion services following the Supreme Court’s 2022 decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.
Both orders were signed on the same day as the March for Life, an annual gathering of anti-abortion activists to mark the 52nd anniversary of the Supreme Court’s 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling, which had established a nationwide right to abortion before being overturned. Trump addressed the rally through a video message, while Vice President JD Vance spoke in person.
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Just a day earlier, Trump issued pardons to around two dozen individuals convicted of blocking access to abortion clinics.
The Biden administration had taken a series of actions to expand abortion access and reproductive healthcare following the Supreme Court ruling. Democrats made abortion rights a central focus of their 2024 campaign strategy, warning of potential restrictions under Trump’s leadership.
Trump’s anti-abortion policies during his first term led to 108,000 deaths of women and children: Report
A 2022 study by the National Academy of Sciences found that Trump’s earlier anti-abortion policies on foreign aid during his first term had led to an estimated 108,000 deaths of women and children in low-income countries.
This was linked to funding cuts for organisations like MSI Reproductive Choices, which provides contraception and STI testing using US funds while offering abortion services through separate revenue streams.
MSI, which refused to comply with the reinstated policy, is expected to lose $14 million in funding from the US Agency for International Development.
According to the organisation, this financial cutback could lead to the suspension of contraception services in several countries, potentially resulting in an additional 2.4 million unintended pregnancies.
(With inputs from agencies)