The Trump administration has confirmed plans to destroy $10 million worth of contraceptives and abortifacients, a move pro-life advocates are hailing as a significant step in upholding U.S. policies against funding abortion-related activities abroad.
The decision aligns with the administration’s reinstatement of the Mexico City Policy, which prohibits taxpayer funding for organizations that promote or perform abortions overseas.
The stockpile, including birth control pills, condoms, and long-term implantable contraceptives, was originally intended for distribution in developing countries through U.S. foreign aid programs. However, concerns that some nongovernmental organizations previously contracted to distribute these products may have engaged in coercive abortion or involuntary sterilization prompted the decision to destroy the reserve, a senior State Department official told Catholic News Agency.
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The destruction will cost approximately $167,000, though rebranding the products for resale would have cost taxpayers several million dollars.
“There is no reason that U.S. taxpayers should be footing the bill for contraception domestically or abroad,” the official said.
Global abortion groups and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) were denied requests to purchase the abortion-causing drugs, reflecting the administration’s strict enforcement of the Mexico City Policy. The policy, expanded under President Donald Trump, cuts off federal assistance to organizations involved in abortion activities.
The decision follows the administration’s broader efforts to defund abortion-related initiatives, including the complete withdrawal of $335 million in funding to UNFPA. The agency, accused by pro-life advocates of supporting coercive abortion practices in countries like China, had previously received significant U.S. support.
“President Trump has fully defunded the pro-abortion United Nations Population Fund, pulling $335 million in funding,” LifeNews reported, citing the administration’s commitment to redirecting resources to pro-life priorities.
Rebecca Oas, director of research for the Center for Family and Human Rights (C-Fam), emphasized the historical ties between international family planning and abortion advocacy.
“The international family planning movement has been inextricably tied to the abortion lobby ever since the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) formed the Office of Population in 1969,” Oas told Catholic News Agency.
She highlighted concerns about coercion, noting reports of Rohingya Muslim women in Bangladesh being forced to receive long-term contraceptive implants to access food rations.
“Family planning groups will admit that their problem is not a lack of supply but a lack of demand,” Oas added.
Father Tadeusz Pacholczyk, a senior ethicist at the National Catholic Bioethics Center, criticized past U.S.-backed family planning programs as “pro-abortion and anti-family imperialism.” He argued that foreign governments should independently procure contraceptives if needed, stating, “The U.S., and U.S. aid agencies, should not be serving as middle men, underwriters, or imperialist brokers for any of this.”
Pro-life advocates see the destruction of the contraceptive stockpile and the defunding of UNFPA as part of a broader commitment to prioritizing maternal health and life-affirming policies.
