I just called my representative in the US House of Representatives about two vital issues.  It literally was a two-minute phone call, and I’ve put all the essential information below.  I encourage all my U.S. readers to do the same.  

Here’s why: The House Appropriations Committee recently passed its Fiscal Year (FY) 2020 Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies bill.  There’s good news about it regarding the funding levels and protections provided for the Teen Pregnancy Prevention (TPP) Program and Title X, and the prohibition of the use of FY 2020 funds to implement the Administration’s domestic gag rule (see links below for details). 

The process is that next, the bill needs to be brought to the House floor for approval.  No date has been scheduled for this next step, but NOW is the time to call our representatives in the House and let them know that this is important to us and that we’ll be watching their vote.  

Fortunately, Power To Decide, the Campaign to Prevent Unplanned Pregnancy, has made it easy for us to advocate: they’ve literally reduced long, complex issues to 2 clear sentences which we can simply read to our representatives over the phone.  This is a critical issue and calling our representatives is a way we can remind them that, with all that is going on in the world, this is vital to us. 

Call your Representative in the US House of Representatives and say:
1.  “Please continue funding for the evidence-based Teen Pregnancy Prevention (TPP) Program at $110 million for FY 2020 appropriations and protect the integrity of the program as the House Appropriations Committee funding bill recently did.”
2.  “Please continue funding for the Title X Family Planning Program at $400 million for FY 2020 appropriations, and prohibit the use of FY 2020 funds to implement the Administration’s domestic gag rule, as the House Appropriations Committee bill does.”

To find out the name and phone number of your representative, click here.  (Note that if you regularly call your representative, it is best to use their Washington, DC number for national issues such as this, and their local number for local issues.)

This is vital advocacy at a vital time.  I’ve kept this short, but below my signature are links for those of you who want to learn more about these issues.

Thanks, in advance, to any of you who make these important phone calls.  And please know that I always appreciate hearing from my readers who make the calls—you inspire me!

Vivian Peters

For the Statement from Power to Decide regarding this funding bill, click here.
For more information about the TPP program, click here.
For more information about Title X, click here.
For more information about the Domestic Gag Rule, click here.  
For more information about Power To Decide, the Campaign to Prevent Unplanned Pregnancy, click here.

The views expressed above are solely those of the author and not those of Planned Parenthood.