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The House Appropriations Committee's proposed FY27 Labor, Health and Human Services budget is more than a funding bill. It is a direct threat to the health, dignity, and autonomy of the people SisterReach serves every day.
If passed, this legislation would eliminate the Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program and Title X Family Planning Program, cut critical HIV prevention and care services, and increase funding for abstinence-only programs that have repeatedly failed young people. It would also reduce investments in HIV research, the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program, and the Minority HIV/AIDS Initiative—programs that many communities depend on for lifesaving care and support.
Let's be clear: these cuts will not impact everyone equally.
The people who will bear the greatest burden are women and young people of color, LGBTQIA+ communities, people living with HIV, rural communities, and families already struggling to access accurate health information and quality healthcare. These are the same communities that continue to experience the highest rates of health disparities, HIV diagnoses, maternal health inequities, and barriers to reproductive healthcare.
At SisterReach, we know that information saves lives. Comprehensive, medically accurate sexuality education helps young people make informed decisions about their bodies and futures. Access to family planning services supports healthy families and communities. HIV prevention, testing, treatment, and care programs help people live longer, healthier lives while reducing new transmissions.
The evidence is clear. The science is clear. The need is clear.
What is not clear is why policymakers continue to prioritize Christian Nationalist ideology over the health and well-being of the very people they were elected to serve. They claim to be Pro-Life. This bill is Pro Death.
Sexual & Reproductive Justice teaches us that every person has the human right to make decisions about their body, their health, and their future with dignity, autonomy, and access to the resources they need to thrive. However, without access to education and health services, those rights hang in the balance.
Congress still has an opportunity to reject these harmful proposals. As the appropriations process continues, we must raise our voices and demand investments that reflect the realities facing our communities.
CALL YOUR REPRESENTATIVE TODAY at 202-224-3121 and urge them to protect and expand funding for comprehensive sexuality education, family planning services, HIV prevention and care programs, and other evidence-based public health initiatives.
Our communities deserve policies rooted in truth, science, compassion, and justice—not fear, stigma, political or theocratic ideology.
The health and futures of our young people, families, and communities depend on it.
Rev. Cherisse Scott
CEO & Founder
SisterReach, Inc.
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