FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
06.14.19
Contact: Alexa Barrett, Communications Assistant
Email: alexa@equityfwd.org
Phone: (914) 602 - 3147
Where is HHS’ Secret Audit?
Group filed FOIA request for alleged audit cited as reason for eliminating lifesaving research
New York, NY – Last week the Department of Health and Human Services announced that it would end as much as $100 million of federal funding used to research cures for diseases and conditions including Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, HIV, Zika and Autism. According to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the decision is based on an audit that “helped inform the policy process that led to the administration’s decision.”
There’s one major problem with HHS’ audit: it’s being kept secret. Equity Forward sent multiple requests to HHS for the audit and also filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request for it, but after more than a week, the department still hasn’t released this key document.
“Why won’t Secretary Azar release the document used to justify a decision that will impact the rights and freedoms of millions of women and families? What is he hiding?” asked Michelle Kuppersmith, director of Equity Forward. “This is a clear example of government overreach, and experts agree that there is no scientific reason to end this lifesaving research. Until we see the underlying document, we won’t know how far HHS went to concoct an explanation for this decision, likely at the behest of anti-abortion extremists that have the ear of the administration.”
Click HERE for Equity Forward’s fact sheet on the benefits of fetal tissue research. For more information on HHS’ sabotage of lifesaving research, visit PutPeopleBeforePolitics.org.
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