Partners In Health (PIH) Statement on Accepting United States Government Funding After the Protecting Human Flourishing in Foreign Assistance (PHFFA) Regulations

Boston, MA (June 24, 2026) – Today PIH announces that it will not accept, pursue, or advance work supported by funding that would result in imposition of the Protecting Human Flourishing in Foreign Assistance (PHFFA) regulations. After serious deliberation, leaders decided that restrictions required by the PHFFA regulations would make it impossible for PIH to operate in line with its mission to provide a preferential option for the poor in health care, would make it impossible to put the needs of the most vulnerable first.

The PHFFA regulations, an extension of a policy commonly called the Global Gag Rule, took effect in February and forbid all recipients of roughly $40B of Foreign Assistance Funding from the State Department from providing or promoting health care related to abortions or a patient’s gender identity; they also forbid participation in diversity, equity, and inclusion programs and activities. There is substantial documentation illustrating how the Global Gag Rule weakens already fragile health systems and undermines the fundamental rights of some of the world’s most marginalized and under-resourced communities.

PIH’s commitment to providing high-quality health care means we will not accept funding that restricts clinicians from providing medical advice based on patients’ needs.  

"When systems fail to provide options, they push desperate women and girls toward unsafe abortions, often leaving them with dangerous complications or illness. On the flip side, when we have open and honest conversations with our patients and they feel heard, respected, and in-control of their health—that is when we see happier and healthier mothers and babies," said Dr. Sterman Touissant, PIH chief medical officer.  

For more than a year, PIH has responded to unexpected funding freezes, program reductions, and project terminations—all while following national laws, local health priorities, and the rights and expressed needs of the communities we serve. Still PIH continues to fight against lowering ambitions and unacceptable standards defined as “status quo.” For decades, PIH has refused to accept less on behalf of others, and we won’t stop now. We will continue caring for patients and advancing health equity for decades to come.