The Trump administration has banned the
Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) from using certain
words and phrases in any official documents related to next year's
budget.
According to The
Washington Post, words that cannot be used include “fetus,”
“vulnerable,” “entitlement,” “diversity,” “transgender,”
“evidence-based” and “science-based.”
CDC officials were informed of the new
policy on Thursday.
Other federal agencies, including
Health and Human Services, Justice, Education and Housing and Urban
Development, have already altered policies related to sexual
orientation, gender identity and abortion rights.
For example, Health and Human Services
(HHS), which oversees CDC, no longer asks questions about sexual
orientation and gender identity in two surveys of American seniors.
An unnamed analyst who attended the
meeting was quoted by the Post as saying: “In my experience,
we've never had any push from an ideological standpoint.”
The National Center HIV/AIDS, Viral
Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention are among the offices overseen by
the CDC.
The Trump administration has waged a
war against transgender rights. It reversed Obama-era rules
instructing public schools to allow transgender students to use the
bathroom of their choice and in July officials announced that
transgender people would no longer be allowed to serve in the
military. Four lawsuits have been filed related to the president's
ban on transgender troops.
(Related: Judge
rejects Trump administration request to delay transgender
enlistment.)