In Response To The Trump Administration’s Domestic Gag Rule, Marcella Vocalized Concern Over The Anticipated Disruption Of Services At Title X Clinics. “The Trump administration acted Friday to bar taxpayer-funded family planning clinics from referring women for abortions, energizing its conservative political base ahead of crucial midterm elections while setting the stage for new legal battles. The Health and Human Services Department sent its proposal to rewrite the rules to the White House, setting in motion a regulatory process that could take months. Scant on details, an administration overview of the plan said it would echo a Reagan-era rule by banning abortion referrals by federally funded clinics and forbidding them from locating in facilities that also provide abortions… Jessica Marcella of the National Family Planning & Reproductive Health Association, which represents clinics, said requiring physical separation from abortion facilities is impractical and would disrupt services for women. "I cannot imagine a scenario in which public health groups would allow this effort to go unchallenged," Marcella said.” [Peninsula Daily News, 5/13/18]
Marcella Stated That The Domestic Gag Rule Denied Patients’ Their Dignity. “The notion that you would withhold information from a patient does not uphold or preserve their dignity,' said Jessica Marcella of the National Family Planning & Reproductive Health Association, which represents family planning clinics. [The Guardian, 5/18/18]
Marcella Commented On The Trump Administration’s Intrusive Approach To Title X…“Despite decades of being a relatively nonpartisan program, Title X -- the only federal grant program exclusively for family planning and reproductive health -- is gearing up to be front and center of a debate about abortion. On Friday, the Trump administration will reportedly propose a rule that prohibits Title X funding from going to organizations that perform or support the procedure…“They’ve moved away from the core tenet of Title X, which is nonintrusive care,” says Jessica Marcella, vice president of advocacy and communications at the National Family Planning and Reproductive Health Association.” [Governing, 5/15/18]
…And Criticized How Trump-Era Restrictions On Title X Led To The Disintegration Of Safety Nets—Which Were Meant To Address The Reproductive Health Needs Of Marginalized Communities. Some health clinics that quit the federal family planning program over Trump anti-abortion policies are cutting staff, charging for services that had been free and making other austerity moves to avert a major hollowing out of reproductive health care for poor women. At least four state health departments, hundreds of Planned Parenthood clinics and dozens of independent providers have withdrawn from the more than $250 million Title X program... “We're watching the safety net disintegrate right before our eyes,” said Jessica Marcella, the vice president of advocacy and communications at the National Family Planning and Reproductive Health Association, which represents staff at thousands of Title X clinics across all 50 states. [Politico, 9/2/19]
Marcella Noted That Texas Title X Restrictions, Which Predated The Trump Administration’s Title X Changes, Offered A Glimpse Into The Danger Of Prioritizing Ideology Over Public Health. “The changes at the federal level mirror policies that some conservative states have been pursuing for years. For a glimpse into this new era of Title X, experts suggest looking to Texas. In 2011, Texas passed a law that cut state family planning dollars by 66 percent and redirected state family planning funding away from reproductive health clinics and toward general primary-care providers. “Texas was very instructive,” says Jessica Marcella, vice president of advocacy and communications for the National Family Planning and Reproductive Health Association, an organization that opposes the new cuts. “If the [Trump] administration is successful, health outcomes could be severely impacted. The fact is, when you move away from science, you’re ignoring public health.” [Governing, 3/4/19]
