Teen pregnancy efforts at 80 institutions around the nation will lose more than $200 million dollars.
Johannes Jander/Flickr
Teen pregnancy efforts at
80 institutions around the nation will lose more than $200 million dollars
, according to the Center For Investigative Reporting.
That's after the Trump administration quietly axed millions of dollars in federal grants aimed at prevention programs.
In Multnomah County, it means a loss of $1.25 million for the Youth Sexual Health Equity Program next year and in 2019.
Multnomah County Health Department Spokeswoman Kim Toevs has been letting school districts know about the cuts, as well as groups that help schools get the pregnancy prevention message across — like the Latino Network, NAYA, Self Enhancement Inc., the Boys and Girls Club and Planned Parenthood.
“Our community partners are really frustrated and upset," said Toevs. "Just like we are."
Toevs works with the Centennial, David Douglas, Parkrose, Portland and Reynolds public school districts.
"We’ll all have to figure out over the next year how we’ll continue to support this work,” she said.
Planned Parenthood programs in Seattle and Spokane, Washington, also had funding cut.
The Obama administration established the five-year federal grants in 2015. They were meant to find scientifically valid ways to help teenagers avoid unwanted pregnancies.
Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price is an outspoken opponent of federal funding for birth control. He advocates abstinence instead.