Attorney General Becerra Files FOIA Request Seeking Answers About Trump-Pence Title X Rule that Restricts Access to Women’s Reproductive Healthcare

Tuesday, August 28, 2018
Contact: (916) 210-6000, agpressoffice@doj.ca.gov

SACRAMENTO – California Attorney General Xavier Becerra today filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request seeking answers about the Trump-Pence Administration’s Title X proposal that restricts access to reproductive healthcare. The Title X program provides critical preventive and life-saving care, including birth control, to four million patients nationally, including one million patients in California. In a letter to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Attorney General Becerra specifically inquires about the reasoning behind the creation of the rule.

“The Trump-Pence Administration’s reckless rule threatens women’s access to critical care,” said Attorney General Becerra. “It creates unnecessary burdens on our healthcare system, not solutions. Today’s FOIA request seeks answers and transparency on the Administration’s motives. The millions of women nationwide who will be harmed by this rule deserve to know why this Administration is interfering in their medical decisions and access to care. We will fight against this dangerous attack on women’s health at every turn.”

On May 22, 2018, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services released a dubious proposed rule that would place several harmful restrictions on the Title X program. California benefits from the largest Title X program in the nation. The program funds healthcare providers throughout the State to support preventive care, including critical reproductive healthcare. Attorney General Becerra announced his opposition shortly after the proposed rule became public. On July 30, 2018, he led a coalition of 13 attorneys general in filing a comment letter opposing the Trump-Pence Administration’s proposal.

A copy of the FOIA request is available here.

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