Laws on family planning now exist in a number of countries worldwide. In the United States, federal family planning laws usually dictate how federal money should be spent in helping U.S. states and foreign countries handle family planning issues, particularly contraception and abortion. U.S. states individually address these issues, including surrogate parenting. Some foreign countries have taken a stricter approach to family planning; China, for instance, is known for its longstanding "one child per family" policy.
U.S. Federal Law
Inside the United States, the federal government addresses family planning mostly through funding public health clinics. Chapter 42 of the Code of Federal Regulations, Section 59, also known as "Title X," provides federal grant money to public health clinics, particularly those that serve poor families. Title X specifically prohibits public health clinics that provide information about abortion from receiving grant funding. These clinics may, however, provide information about and access to various forms of contraception.
Outside the United States, the U.S. federal government provides money for health clinics in a number of developing countries. According to USAID, the agency responsible for distributing this funding, money may not be used to pay for abortion services, though it may be used to provide access to contraception.
U.S. State Laws
U.S. states have enacted a number of laws on family planning. Although federal law prohibits states from banning access to abortion or contraception entirely, various states have passed laws regulating these services, particularly abortion. For example, 38 U.S. states require abortions to be performed by a licensed physician, according to the Guttmacher Institute, and 24 states require a patient to wait at least 24 hours between seeking an abortion and undergoing one.
International Laws
As human populations increase worldwide, many countries have enacted their own family planning laws. According to the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, or UNESCAP, China oversees family planning by permitting one child per family. A family may seek to have a second child "subject to law and regulation" under Article 18 of China's Population and Family Planning Law. Similarly, in 2006, Guatemala sought to offer family planning options to its growing population by teaching schoolchildren about the use of contraceptives, according to Catholic Online. In 2009, Afghanistan's government took the opposite approach, preventing women from refusing to have intercourse with their husbands and severely limiting their access to contraceptives, according to the International Planned Parenthood Foundation.
References
- U.S. Health and Human Services: 42 CFR 59
- USAID: Family Planning
- Guttmacher Institute: An Overview of State Abortion Laws
- UNESCAP: Population and Family Planning Law of the People's Republic of China
- International Planned Parenthood Foundation: Afghanistan Women Outraged at Proposed Family Planning Law
