CNN – The Trump administration is set to destroy $9.7 million worth of US-purchased contraceptives [so-called] rather than deliver them to women overseas, following the dismantling of foreign assistance programs carried out by the US Agency for International Development, or USAID.
The “preliminary decision” to destroy the USAID-procured birth control was confirmed by a State Department spokesperson, who said the cost of incinerating them would be $167,000.
The contraceptives have been housed in a warehouse in Geel, Belgium. The Belgian foreign ministry said it was engaged in diplomatic talks with the US embassy to work to find alternative solutions for the supplies.
The contraceptives are mostly long-lasting types of birth control, such as intrauterine devices (IUDs) and injectables, a US congressional aide told CNN. It is not clear exactly when the supplies will be destroyed, according to the aide.
“They have to double incinerate the products because they contain high levels of hormones and they don’t want to risk leaking the byproducts out in the environment, which likely adds to the cost,” the congressional aide said.
“The Trump administration is quite literally burning taxpayer money.”
[This statement is patently false. The taxpayer money was ‘burned’ when it was spent. – HEADLINE HEALTH]
A list of the supplies, shared with CNN by another source with knowledge of the warehouse stock, shows that the contraceptives include copper IUDs, rod implants, birth control injections, and levonorgestrel and ethinyl estradiol tablets. Some have USAID branding but the majority do not, according to the source’s list.
Most of the products expire in 2028 or 2029, with the earliest expiration date among the products in April 2027, according to the list detailing the nearly 5 million items …
