The Trump administration has expanded the so-called “Mexico City policy” banning foreign aid for abortions to include diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.
The new rule implements several Trump administration directives that foreign aid recipients agree not to promote DEI and “gender ideology” in any of their programs.
First implemented by Ronald Reagan in 1984, the Mexico City policy has been renewed by every Republican administration since then. It bars foreign non-governmental organizations from receiving U.S. family planning funds if they “perform or actively promote abortion.”
In the rule finalized last week, the State Department also broadened this scope to include U.S.-based NGOs, international organizations, foreign governments, and foreign government-owned companies.
“The Department believes that many organizations that are current recipients of foreign assistance will come into compliance as they obtain future grants or when funds are added to existing grants,” Deputy Secretary of State Christopher T. Landau wrote in the document.
The State Department expects the new rule to affect about 2,500 aid and health organizations.
“However, the Department understands that certain organizations may decide to no longer accept foreign assistance in the future because of these award terms, which could in turn result in temporary disruptions in service delivery or impacts on program beneficiaries,” Mr. Landau wrote. “In such cases, the Department will work to find new partners willing to agree to the award term, while minimizing any disruption of services.”
KFF, an independent health policy think tank formerly known as the Kaiser Family Foundation, estimates that the rule affects roughly $40 billion in aid that 2,562 organizations spend in 160 countries.
Several Christian advocacy groups welcomed the policy change this week.
“We support robust funding for authentic lifesaving and life-affirming foreign assistance and applaud new policies that prevent taxpayer dollars from going to organizations that engage in and promote abortion or gender ideology overseas,” the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops said in a statement Monday.
“Pro-life Americans should celebrate this decision and continue speaking out for the unborn, who are truly the most vulnerable,” said Richard Harris, executive director of Truth & Liberty, an evangelical Christian advocacy group.
The announcement is the latest in a series of abortion-related policy moves over the past few weeks.
Last week, the Department of Health and Human Services rescinded a Biden administration rule that attempted to force religiously affiliated pharmacies to distribute abortion pills, despite a 2023 court ruling siding with them.
At the same time, the Trump administration asked a federal court to pause a Louisiana lawsuit challenging the legality of mail-order pills in abortion-restricting states.
The Justice Department said in a court filing that the Food and Drug Administration needs “a year or more” to review the side effects of mifepristone, a key abortion drug.
Reached this week for comment, some abortion experts called the Mexico City announcement a distraction from the president not taking a position on mail-order pills ahead of November’s midterm elections. They said Mr. Trump has stayed silent about pro-life demands for unpopular pill restrictions that could hurt certain Republican candidates.
“We’re seeing a playbook where the Trump administration throws in a nod to pro-life policies to placate people who want action on mifepristone,” said Mary Ziegler, a historian of the legal abortion debate and a law professor at the University of California, Davis.
Michael New, a professor of social research at the Catholic University of America, said pro-lifers are pleased with “some” of the administration’s recent moves.
“That said, the main priority for pro-lifers is getting Trump to place limits on chemical abortions and specifically to halt tele-health abortions,” said Mr. New, an affiliated scholar at the pro-life Charlotte Lozier Institute.
The Washington Times reached out to the White House for comment.
The number of abortions reported nationwide has grown steadily since the Supreme Court allowed states to restrict the procedure in June 2022.
Multiple studies have found a surge in mail-order pills driving the trend, even as reported abortions dwindle in states that have banned them.
Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, which has allocated $80 million to support pro-life Republicans in November’s election, also praised the president’s decision to expand the Mexico City policy.
“However, abortion drugs and the forced taxpayer funding of abortion are the most urgent issues affecting the lives of hundreds of thousands,” said Marjorie Dannenfelser, the group’s president.
