The "Mexico City Policy" and Its Effects on HIV / AIDS Services in Sub-Saharan Africa

Abstract

The United States recently joined the global effort to combat the HIV/AIDS pandemic in sub-Saharan Africa and other developing regions when it committed more than $15 billion to international HIV/AIDS initiatives. In the spirit of strengthening U.S. participation in this effort, this Note encourages U.S. leaders to reevaluate the Mexico City Policy, a foreign policy that indirectly affects numerous people living with HIV/AIDS. Commonly known as the global gag rule, the Mexico City Policy prohibits most foreign non-governmental organizations that receive U.S. family planning funding from providing or promoting abortion services. This Note analyzes the Mexico City Policy's impact on HIV/AIDS services provided by family planning clinics in sub-Saharan Africa, as well as the potential implications of an executive branch proposal that would expand the policy beyond family planning to HIV/AIDS assistance. This Note concludes that congressional repeal of the Mexico City Policy is the most plausible remedy.