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APHA applauds President Biden’s executive actions to turn back barriers to affordable, comprehensive health care

Date: Jan 28 2021

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Media Relations 

Statement from APHA Executive Director Georges C. Benjamin, MD

The two executive actions signed by President Biden today are critical and much-needed reversals of harmful attacks on Americans’ access to quality, affordable and comprehensive health services.

During a once-in-a-century pandemic, APHA stands with the administration in recognizing that now is the time to ensure individuals and families who already are struggling have more access, not less, to the essential health coverage and services necessary to keep them healthy.

We are grateful that these actions include the reopening of a special federal marketplace enrollment period to reduce the number of the uninsured. In addition, we support the review of the previous administration’s policies that put up barriers to accessing affordable health coverage and threatened the health of the millions of Americans who have preexisting health conditions. We also strongly favor the administration’s call for a review of damaging Medicaid work requirement demonstrations.

We are also pleased that the administration will review the egregious changes made to the Title X program, which hinder access to information about all of available reproductive health choices, including abortion. Title X is proven to reduce teen pregnancy and infertility, decrease cervical cancer rates and to identify and prevent sexually transmitted infections. Today’s executive action will also reverse the damaging Mexico City policy, which restricts the use of U.S. global health assistance for critical comprehensive sexual and reproductive health services.

We look forward to continue working with the Biden/Harris administration and Congress to further expand access to critical health services to ensure our nation is more equitable, healthy and just.

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The American Public Health Association champions the health of all people and all communities. We are the only organization that combines a nearly 150-year perspective, a broad-based member community and the ability to influence federal policy to improve the public’s health. Learn more at www.apha.org.