Shaheen Statement on Trump Administration’s Latest Attack on Women’s Reproductive Rights, Implementing Domestic Gag Rule on Healthcare Providers

**SHAHEEN: “President Trump needs to keep his hands off of women’s healthcare and let women make decisions for themselves…”**

(Washington, DC)—U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) issued the following statement in response to the Trump administration’s release of a draft domestic gag rule, which imposes strict restrictions on family planning programs that participate in the Title X program, cutting off women’s access to reproductive healthcare:

“The Trump administration is sacrificing the health and wellbeing of millions of American women just to score political points with his base,” said Shaheen. “Women have a constitutional right to reproductive healthcare and millions of women rely on organizations like Planned Parenthood for sound advice and care. This order egregiously interferes with conversations between women and their doctors, silencing necessary advice that is important to women’s health and preventing access to contraceptives and many other services. President Trump needs to keep his hands off of women’s healthcare and let women make decisions for themselves based on the best possible information.  There is bipartisan support in Congress to protect women’s reproductive freedom, and I will work across the aisle to defend women in our communities and safeguard their constitutionally-afforded rights.”

Last week, Senator Shaheen joined a group of Senators to send a letter to Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar, opposing this specific effort.

Senator Shaheen is a dedicated advocate for women’s reproductive rights. She has been fighting for years to increase coverage of women’s preventative care in the annual defense authorization bill, and has repeatedly fought to repeal the Global Gag Rule, which bans critical federal aid for non-governmental groups that provide the full scope of family planning and maternal health services abroad.