The Mexico City Policy

This memorandum revokes the Biden administration's 2021 policy rescinding the Mexico City Policy and reinstates the Trump-era 2017 version, which prohibits U.S. foreign aid funding for organizations that provide, counsel on, or refer for abortions. It directs the Secretary of State, in coordination with HHS, to expand these restrictions across all departments and agencies providing global health assistance, and to ensure no U.S. funds support coercive abortion or involuntary sterilization programs.

Federal Register Open PDF 90 FR 8753

Impact dates

Date TBD
Implementation plan to extend Mexico City Policy to all global health assistance departments/agencies

Key directives

Revoke Presidential Memorandum of January 28, 2021
Reinstate Presidential Memorandum of January 23, 2017
Implement plan to extend Mexico City Policy requirements to all departments/agencies providing global health assistance
Ensure U.S. taxpayer dollars do not fund organizations/programs supporting coercive abortion or involuntary sterilization
Publish memorandum in Federal Register

Who is ordered

Timeline

Immediate

Revocation of January 28, 2021 memorandum takes effect
Reinstatement of January 23, 2017 Mexico City Policy

Near term (90d)

Secretary of State to develop implementation plan extending restrictions to all departments/agencies providing global health assistance

Long term

Structural restriction on U.S. global health funding eligibility for foreign NGOs
Potential shifts in global health service delivery as organizations adjust to funding restrictions

Risks & tensions

Vague timeline for implementation plan creates uncertainty for grantees
Expansion to 'all departments or agencies' goes beyond traditional State/USAID/HHS scope, potentially affecting DOD and other actors
Coercive abortion/involuntary sterilization language may create implementation ambiguity separate from standard Mexico City restrictions
Predictable partisan cycle of reinstatement/revocation across administrations creates planning instability for international health organizations