A federal judge ruled on Tuesday that the Department of Health and Human Services illegally terminated a teen pregnancy prevention grant two years early.
King County, which includes Seattle, Wash., sued HHS because the federal agency terminated the grant over ideological purposes.
“We sued the federal government because they are attempting to eliminate funding for programs based on science and evidence in favor of right-wing ideology that is out of touch with reality,” said King County Executive Dow Constantine.
King County got a five-year, $5 million award in 2015 through the federal Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program, which funds programs aimed at preventing teen pregnancies.
All grants under the HHS program were terminated in 2017.
[Related: Judge sides with Planned Parenthood in teen pregnancy prevention grants]
The ruling from Reagan appointee John Coughenour of the U.S. District Court for Washington means HHS must process the county’s new application for a teen pregnancy prevention grant, the county executive office said in a press release. It can only deny funding for good cause or if the county has not complied with the terms of the grant.
HHS responded that it was disappointed with the ruling.
“As numerous studies have shown, the Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program is not working. Continuing the program in its current state does a disservice to the youth it serves and to the taxpayers who fund it,” said HHS spokesperson Caitlin Oakley.
Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., cheered the ruling in a statement Tuesday.
“I’m glad that despite the Trump-Pence Administration’s alarming attempts to undermine these important investments and other efforts to promote the health and wellbeing of women and youths, King County can continue its work to reduce teen pregnancy and provide new research on how we get young people the information they need to make healthy decisions and plan for their futures,” she said.
