Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Trump Administration Sued Over 'Wrongful Termination' Of Teen Pregnancy Prevention Grants
The Washington Post: Nine Organizations Sue Trump Administration For Ending Grants To Teen Pregnancy Programs
Planned Parenthood has joined forces with eight other local government, health care, and advocacy organizations to take the Trump administration to court over the defunding of a national teen pregnancy program. On Thursday, the groups filed four separate lawsuits in U.S. District Court in the Eastern District of Washington, in Maryland and the District of Columbia, arguing that approximately $220 million in grants was wrongfully terminated. The Obama-era Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program (TPP) was created by Congress to conduct rigorous scientific research into what approaches work to lower teen pregnancy rates and try to provide the best ones to at-risk youths. (Cha, 2/15)
The Hill: Groups Sue Over Trump Cuts To Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program
"The lawsuits ask that the funding for the program be reinstated to serve the 1.2 million young people that would benefit from the program," Planned Parenthood said in a press release. In August, an office within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) notified 81 institutions across the U.S. that the five-year grants they were awarded would end two years sooner than planned. (Hellmann, 2/15)
The Associated Press: Lawsuits Challenge US Cuts To Anti-Teen Pregnancy Grants
The lawsuits — filed in federal courts in Washington, Maryland, and the District of Columbia — say the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services unlawfully plans to end the five-year Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program grants in June after three years. The funding, which offers about $100 million annually, provides sex education, youth development and abstinence education. (2/15)
Reveal: Planned Parenthood, Youth Groups Sue Government For Teen Pregnancy Cuts
In President Donald Trump’s 2019 budget proposal unveiled Monday, the Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program would be replaced with abstinence-only-until-marriage programs. (Kay, 2/15)
