[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 45 (Wednesday, March 13, 2019)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1815-S1816]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                                Title X

  Mr. President, I am here today to rise in opposition to the Trump 
administration's domestic gag rule on the title X program.
  For more than 40 years, title X has provided women and families with 
comprehensive family planning and preventive health services. Congress 
created title X with a strong bipartisan vote, with Members of both 
parties recognizing how vital the services it provides are. Since then, 
for those in rural communities, for low-income women and men, and for 
members of the LGBTQ community, title X-supported health centers have 
been a major source of preventive care and reproductive health 
services, including cancer screenings, birth control, HIV and STI 
tests, and counseling services.
  Title X helps communities and people throughout my home State of New 
Hampshire. Title X-funded centers deliver care to nearly 18,000 Granite 
Staters annually, and title X-supported Planned Parenthood centers 
serve 60 percent of those Granite Staters. In some parts of my State, 
there are no options other than a title X center, and if other options 
exist, they don't provide the same expertise and commitment to 
reproductive healthcare services that title X centers offer. Community 
health centers around my State do important work, but they have told me 
that they will not be able to replace the services lost if the 
administration is successful in its efforts to target Planned 
Parenthood.
  The Trump administration's gag rule is simply dangerous. It would 
force providers to violate their professional and ethical standards 
regarding their obligation to give patients full and accurate 
information about their healthcare and would discriminate against 
providers who refuse to curtail truthful communication with their 
patients. This rule would cut investments in family planning clinics, 
taking away services that so many people depend on, with a 
disproportionate effect on low-income families and those who already 
struggle to access care. This effort is part of the shameless and 
blatantly political attempts from this administration to restrict 
access to healthcare.

[[Page S1816]]

  By attacking providers, such as Planned Parenthood, the Trump 
administration is once again threatening the health and economic well-
being of millions. Women in New Hampshire and across the country 
deserve better. They should have the right to make their own choice 
about if or when to start a family, and they should be able to visit 
providers of their choice who understand their healthcare needs and 
will be truthful about their healthcare options and realities. This 
title X gag rule undermines all of that.
  I am going to continue to stand up for a woman's constitutionally 
protected rights, and I will do everything I can to fight back against 
these partisan attempts from the Trump administration to undermine 
women's reproductive healthcare.
  Thank you.