Tennessee Republican calls Xavier Becerra ‘malicious’ for axing funding over abortion ban
Gabrielle M. Etzel
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Rep. Mark Green (R-TN) called Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra‘s decision to revoke millions of dollars in federal family planning funding due to the state’s abortion ban “arbitrary and malicious” in a letter sent on Wednesday.
“Title X funding is explicitly prohibited from going towards abortions,” Green told the Washington Examiner, “so HHS’s decision to eliminate Tennessee’s funding because of our pro-life laws is ridiculous. How can this administration pretend to be pro-woman and yet cut off low-income women in Tennessee from cancer screenings, pregnancy counseling, and other crucial services? The Biden administration’s hypocrisy is palpable.”
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Title X provides federal funds to states for low-income people to obtain family planning and preventive health services, such as birth control, pregnancy testing, and cancer screenings. Although federal dollars are not allowed to be used for abortions, clinicians are federally required to provide information about all treatment options, including abortions, to patients who present with a positive pregnancy test.
When Tennessee banned abortions in August 2022, however, state law required healthcare providers to only share with their patients information on “all options that are legal in the State of Tennessee.”
After serving as an Army flight surgeon in both Afghanistan and Iraq, Green began a civilian career in emergency medicine administration before running for Congress. He also founded two free medical clinics in Memphis and Clarksville, Tennessee, and has an A+ rating with Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America.
Becerra argued in a March letter that the phrasing of Tennessee’s instructions to clinicians makes the state out of compliance with the Title X statute. In an effort to continue to provide care to low-income Tennesseans, Gov. Bill Lee introduced a budget amendment to backfill the loss of federal funding.
The HHS Office of Population Affairs issued a question and answers document in June 2022 addressing concerns regarding changes to Title X in the wake of the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization ruling that struck down federal constitutional protections for abortion.
The document states that providers are still obligated to “provide information and counseling” about abortion irrespective of the legality of the procedure in the state. The document also indicates that “there are no geographic limits for Title X recipients making referrals for their clients,” outlining that healthcare professionals are to make referrals within as close of a radius as possible, even if this requires crossing state lines.
Green contends that the enforcement of the HHS rule both violates the congressional intent in the passage of Title X and is not in accordance with the Dobbs decision.
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“While [HHS] may struggle to comprehend statutory laws and your solemn oaths to uphold said laws, the State of Tennessee is operating well within it’s constitutional and legal bounds,” Green wrote. “Your department is targeting Tennesseans because this administration believes that everyone must kowtow to the radical pro-abortion agenda.”
In the letter, Green said: “push Tennessee further away by continuing to revoke these funds, or restore its rightful status under Title X.”