Are your elected officials on the list?

It’s the job of state and local elected officials to know what’s best for the people in their communities. That’s why mayors representing more than 32 million Americans in 80 cities across the country just wrote a letter to the Trump-Pence administration denouncing its proposed nationwide gag rule. These leaders are uniting to demand their citizens’ right to access affordable, quality health care and information. And they’re not the only ones speaking out.

The mayors joined more than 200 U.S. senators and representatives, 14 governors, and 274 state legislators who recently came out in opposition to the gag rule, which would prohibit health care providers from referring patients for safe, legal abortion and block patients from Planned Parenthood health centers.

That’s almost 600 elected officials who

think Trump’s gag rule is a dangerous

attack on our rights and health.



Are YOUR state and local leaders denouncing Trump's gag rule? They represent 47 states, big and small. But across the board, their message is the same: Americans don’t want a dangerous and restrictive gag rule. Not now. Not ever. See if your governor, mayor, senators, and state legislators are speaking out. Join them in taking action!

What the Gag Rule Means for Your Health

The Trump-Pence administration’s nationwide gag rule, officially proposed on May 22, would harm the four million patients who rely on Title X — the nation’s program for affordable birth control and reproductive health care.

The administration's gag rule would do three main things: Add new restrictions designed to make it impossible for patients to access care at Planned Parenthood health centers. Make it illegal for doctors, nurses, hospitals, community health centers, and any other provider in the Title X program to tell patients how they can safely and legally access abortion — even if that’s what the patient wants, and even if withholding that information threatens their health. Remove the guarantee that patients get full and accurate information about their health care from their doctors. Stop the Gag Rule

Planned Parenthood health centers serve 41 percent of the patients who get care through Title X. Blocking these patients from Planned Parenthood health centers would leave many of them with nowhere else to go for birth control, cancer screenings, wellness exams, and other crucial preventive care.

But the domestic gag rule wouldn’t just affect Planned Parenthood. The rule “gags” any Title X provider from referring patients for abortion. That means it would affect every health care provider in the program, from community health centers to hospitals.

What City Leaders Say About the Gag Rule

In an open letter to Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar, a bipartisan group of 80 mayors highlighted the irreplaceable care that Planned Parenthood’s services provide people in their communities. The mayors also declared their support for equitable health care access:

People go to Planned Parenthood and other Title X centers because they know they will find health care professionals who are compassionate experts dedicated to reproductive and preventive health care. ... It would be nothing short of disastrous for the millions of people who access care through the Title X program to lose access to the providers that they trust and to the expert information that directly impacts their bodies and lives.



What State Leaders Say About the Gag Rule

In a separate letter to Azar, 14 governors also underscored the danger of politicians interfering in the doctor-patient relationship. The governors pledged to fight back.

If this reckless policy is finalized as written, we will have no choice but to explore all possible avenues, including legal options, to block it from harming the women in our states.

What Everyone Else Says About the Gag Rule

The nationwide gag rule has been met with widespread opposition not only by lawmakers, but also by the American people, the medical community, and public health organizations.

We need you to speak out NOW! The gag rule is open for public comment. We have fewer than 60 days to tell the Department of Health and Human Services just how dangerous and unpopular this policy is. TAKE ACTION

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Tags: Reproductive Rights, Title X, Trump Administration, birth control