Andrea Seastrand: “Mr. Chairman, I want to say right off the bat that elimination of title X as a government program does not mean the…”

“Mr. Chairman, I want to say right off the bat that elimination of title X as a government program does not mean the elimination of family planning services for the poor. What title X supporters fail to tell the American people is that its funding level is maintained in this bill. $193 million in family planning assistance--the same level as fiscal year 1995--remains available through block grants. All current recipients of title X funding will still be able to apply for funds from their States. What we are doing in this bill is recognizing the inefficiencies of title X as a federal program. Title X was established in 1970 as a way to reduce unintended pregnancies by providing services to low-income, poor women. In fact the program was originally designed to help poor couples--not individuals--plan their families. Over its 25 years title X has mushroomed into a model of government inefficiency and been a contributing factor to the steady increases in areas where we were supposed to see dramatic reductions: single-parent families; illegitimacy; sexually transmitted diseases; and despite the assertions of its supporters, abortions. The program is another example of where the hand of Federal Government--well intended as it may have been--has compounded a problem.”