![]() ![]() We have treated women who received medicines from private pharmacies but weren’t given the correct pills, or the right information or appropriate support they needed. We’ve seen women who drank chlorine or poisons. We’ve seen women who have used pens, broken glass, or sticks to try to induce an abortion. In 2019, MSF treated more than 25,800 women and girls with abortion-related complications, many of which resulted from unsafe attempts to end a pregnancy. However, we see the harmful impacts these types of policies have on limiting women's access to essential health care. Restricting access to abortion only pushes women to resort to unsafe abortion methods.ĭoctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) does not accept US government funding, so our programs are not directly affected by the Global Gag Rule. The Global Gag Rule does not reduce the number of abortions that take place. ![]() Millions of women still don’t have access to safe abortion care because of restrictive laws, cost, stigma, a lack of trained providers, or other unnecessary barriers -such as mandatory waiting periods or misleading information. Rescinding the Global Gag Rule is just a first step. "While we are relieved to see a halt to this dangerous policy, there is much more work to do to mitigate the damage we have witnessed. Manisha Kumar, head of MSF’s task force on safe abortion care: This affected frontline health workers providing a range of services beyond sexual and reproductive health care, including vital nutrition programs, lifesaving malaria treatment, and critical tuberculosis and HIV care. The Trump administration took the policy much further than previous administrations, expanding the restrictions to apply to all US government funded global health assistance, not only to NGOs involved in family planning. It acts as a “gag” on health care providers worldwide, prohibiting them from even counseling women about their reproductive choices or referring them to other health providers for care. The policy prevents US government funds from going to any foreign nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) that provide abortion-related information, referrals, or services, even with privately raised or non-US funds. and around the globe.On January 28, President Biden rescinded the Mexico City policy, more commonly known as the Global Gag Rule. It is now critical that the policy is repealed permanently.” It could signify a renewed commitment to supporting family planning and reproductive services in the U.S. Over the past four years, the expanded global gag rule has had a negative and lasting impact on millions of vulnerable girls and women around the world. ![]() The Guttmacher Institute reported that projects related to HIV/AIDS, nutrition, malaria, water and sanitation, tuberculosis and other infectious diseases were affected.īy repealing the global gag rule, Plan International UK says, “We applaud this important decision by President Biden. It moved beyond applying to NGOs acting to extend reproductive healthcare and rights. The Trump administration started to expand the global gag rule in 2017. Any medication should be prescribed by a pharmacist and aftercare must be considered. While it should be performed by a qualified clinician in a clean environment, the World Health Organization says patients should receive advice beforehand. There are a lot of factors that make a termination safe. Of those that are unsafe, 97% are undertaken in developing countries. That equates to around 25 million terminations. Combined with reduced access to health services, this is likely to mean a rise in early and unwanted pregnancies – already a leading cause of death for adolescent girls around the world,” says Caldwell, “On top of the health risks, early pregnancy can rob girls of their future by putting an unfair and unnecessary end to their education.”Īccording to research published in The Lancet, almost half of abortions that occur every year are unsafe. The Covid-19 crisis has led to a hidden pandemic of gender-based violence and sexual exploitation. ![]() “The decision to repeal the rule comes not a moment too soon. ![]()
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