Skip to main content

We are urgently seeking 500 new Life Defenders (monthly supporters) before the end of October to help save babies from abortion 365 days a year. Your first gift as a Life Defender today will be DOUBLED. Click here to make your monthly commitment.

Live Action LogoLive Action
olivia tennessee

Court lets Biden-Harris HHS withhold Title X funds from TN because it didn’t counsel for abortion

Icon of a megaphoneNewsbreak·By Leslie Wolfgang

Court lets Biden-Harris HHS withhold Title X funds from TN because it didn’t counsel for abortion

The 6th Circuit Court of Appeals in Tennessee v. Becerra, et. al announced this week that the State of Tennessee gave up funding through Title X when it chose not to include counseling for illegal abortions with the grant money. According to the original complaint filed by the Attorney General’s office, the suit sought to defend Tennessee against the “federal government’s latest effort to coerce States into carrying out pro-abortion policy in violation of statutory, constitutional, and administrative-law limits.”

The 2-1 ruling allows the federal Department of Health and Human Services to withhold about $7 million of funding for low-income family planning services from Tennessee for fiscal year 2022-23. The money was given instead to Planned Parenthood of Tennessee and North Mississippi, and Virginia League for Planned Parenthood — who used the money in Tennessee.

“We are experts in high-quality, nonjudgmental sexual and reproductive health care and sex education. We know just how important these services are for our patients, especially those with lower incomes,” asserted Planned Parenthood of TN when it received the funds in 2023.

Since 1970, Title X has authorized the Federal Government to make grants to states and private entities that offer family planning projects. Using the funding to provide actual abortions is restricted, but the federal government has regularly permitted counseling related to abortions. 

Dear Reader,

Every day in America, more than 2,800 preborn babies lose their lives to abortion.

That number should break our hearts and move us to action.

Ending this tragedy requires daily commitment from people like you who refuse to stay silent.

Millions read Live Action News each month — imagine the impact if each of us took a stand for life 365 days a year.

Right now, we’re urgently seeking 500 new Life Defenders (monthly donors) to join us before the end of October. And thanks to a generous $250,000 matching grant, your first monthly gift will be DOUBLED to help save lives and build a culture that protects the preborn.

Will you become one of the 500 today? Click here now to become a Live Action Life Defender and have your first gift doubled.

Together, we can end abortion and create a future where every child is cherished and every mother is supported.

In its complaint, Tennessee argued that the “spending power” of the federal government should not infringe on its state sovereignty. But the Court ruled that Tennessee could not “dictate” how eligibility would be determined for the federal grants.  In particular, the court determined that while abortion may be illegal in Tennessee, providing information about the illegal services was not restricted by their law, and that federal funds should be used accordingly.

Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti has previously accused the federal government of “playing politics” with the health of Tennessee women. As of the writing of this article, the AG’s office had not yet issued a statement in response to the Appeals Court Decision. 

Urge Walmart, Costco, Kroger, and other major chains to resist pressure to dispense the abortion pill

Live Action News is pro-life news and commentary from a pro-life perspective.

Contact editor@liveaction.org for questions, corrections, or if you are seeking permission to reprint any Live Action News content.

Guest Articles: To submit a guest article to Live Action News, email editor@liveaction.org with an attached Word document of 800-1000 words. Please also attach any photos relevant to your submission if applicable. If your submission is accepted for publication, you will be notified within three weeks. Guest articles are not compensated (see our Open License Agreement). Thank you for your interest in Live Action News!

Read Next

Read NextxAI Grok's 'companion' chatbot, "Good Rudi"
Pop Culture

Grok's 'companion' chatbot refers children to Planned Parenthood

Sheena Rodriguez

·

Spotlight Articles