Several Democratic members of New York’s congressional delegation are calling on U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to reverse the termination of grants aimed at preventing teen pregnancy in New York state.
Last month, the Trump administration canceled 53 of 67 federal grants aimed at preventing teen pregnancy. The grants fall under the umbrella of the Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program and Office of Adolescent Health, which were created in 2010.
New criteria laid out by HHS state that grant recipients should promote abstinence, marriage and fertility protection.
A priorities page of the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Health states that OASH will “focus on programs that do not promote material that depicts, describes, exposes or presents obscene, indecent, or sexually explicit content, including content that encourages, normalizes or promotes sexual activity for minors.”
In a letter first shared exclusively with Spectrum News, members of New York’s congressional delegation wrote to Kennedy that the recent grant terminations “affect all three known TPP Tier 1 direct service grantees: the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, Cicatelli Associates,Inc., and Children’s Aid.
Together, these grants represent over $4.3 million annually in federal support and serve approximately 19,000 young people each year across New York City, Buffalo, and other communities.”
The letter is co-authored by Bronx Rep. Ritchie Torres, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand. Reps. Tim Kennedy, Paul Tonko, Nydia Velázquez, Jerry Nadler, Grace Meng and Adriano Espaillat are also signees.
The lawmakers wrote that the “abrupt termination of existing grants without a transition period or clear guidance” will “disrupt services that young people, families, schools, and communities rely on, with especially severe consequences in communities experiencing concentrated poverty.” The lawmakers requested HHS provide bridge funding and guidance to ensure that “affected grantees maintain service and avoid disruption” if “[grant] reinstatement is not available.”
Spectrum News has contacted HHS for comment.
While teen pregnancy rates have declined substantially over the past two decades, New York City, according to the lawmakers, “has experienced increases since 2021, including a 10 percent increase from 2021 to 2022 and a further 5 percent increase from 2022 to 2023. In 2023, there were more than 5,300 pregnancies among New York City teens, approximately three-quarters of which were unintended. During the same period, condom use among sexually active adolescents declined, and the share reporting no contraceptive use increased.” The lawmakers concluded that the “trends underscore the need for sustained investment in interventions that help young people develop risk-reduction skills and access sexual health resources.”