WASHINGTON (May 15, 2017) – The leading global poverty-fighting organization CARE is denouncing the Trump Administration’s announcement today to expand the “Mexico City policy” restrictions to all global health assistance from the Department of State, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Department of Defense. U.S. policy governing foreign assistance must reflect the most evidence-based methods aimed at ending preventable maternal and child deaths. Any action that jeopardizes the resources needed to achieve this goal will have dire implications for the women, men and families that CARE serves.
“Global health is a nonpartisan issue,” said Michelle Nunn, president and CEO of CARE. “Since 1990, we have almost halved maternal mortality rates by increasing access to comprehensive health services for women and adolescent girls, including access to voluntary contraception. By implementing this harmful policy, we will undo the decades of progress we have achieved and send a signal to the world that we are stepping down from our leadership role.”
As an organization fighting the forces that trap millions of people in poverty around the world, CARE is deeply concerned that this decision goes even further than previous iterations by affecting the privately funded activities of organizations receiving any federal global health funding from the Department of State, USAID and the Department of Defense. CARE’s global work shows that, when U.S. policy restricts access to global health services, vulnerable women and children suffer the most.
We have the capability to drastically change that reality and it is in our best interest to do so. We should not restrict care and deny funding to lifesaving programs. CARE will continue to work to ensure that women around the world receive the comprehensive health care they need and deserve. By ensuring that all women have access to voluntary contraception, we could reduce maternal deaths by 67 percent and newborn deaths by 77 percent globally. These low cost interventions can save lives and build a brighter future for women, their families and their communities.
ABOUT CARE
Founded in 1945, CARE is a leading humanitarian organization fighting global poverty. CARE places special focus on working alongside poor girls and women because, equipped with the proper resources, they have the power to lift whole families and entire communities out of poverty. Last year, CARE worked in 94 countries and reached more than 80 million people around the world. To learn more, please visit www.care.org.
Media Contacts
Nicole Ellis, +1-202-560-1791, nicole.ellis@care.org