Government ponders future of $9 million worth of contraceptives, potentially slated for destruction under Trump authority
The U.S.-funded stockpile of family planning supplies, valued at approximately $9.7 to $10 million, is currently stored in a warehouse in Geel, Belgium. This stash includes contraceptive pills, implants, intrauterine devices (IUDs), and injectable contraceptives, with expiration dates between 2027 and 2031. These supplies were intended for distribution to low-income countries through USAID’s programs, which have been dismantled under the Trump administration’s actions.
However, the Trump administration has preliminarily decided to destroy these contraceptives despite offers from UN agencies and NGOs to purchase and distribute them to populations in need. This decision has generated significant backlash from global health and advocacy groups, highlighting concerns about wastefulness and the impact on reproductive health worldwide.
Efforts to prevent the destruction have involved international organizations and NGOs offering to assume responsibility for purchasing and distributing the supplies. Public and media campaigns have drawn attention to the waste of usable contraceptives, while legal challenges have pointed out that the administration’s cuts and destruction plans override congressional appropriations and disrupt established programs.
Despite these efforts, as of early August 2025, the supplies remain at risk. Charles Dallara, the grandson of a French former lawmaker who was a contraception pioneer in France, urged President Emmanuel Macron not to let France become an accomplice to the destruction of essential health tools for millions of women. The U.S. branch of family planning aid group MSI Reproductive Choices offered to purchase, repackage, and distribute the contraceptives at its own expense, but was repeatedly rejected.
U.S. senators Jeanne Shaheen and Lisa Murkowski wrote a bipartisan letter of protest to U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, stating that destroying the stockpile would be a waste of U.S. taxpayer dollars and an abdication of U.S. global leadership in preventing unintended pregnancies, unsafe abortions, and maternal deaths.
The U.S. State Department deputy spokesman Tommy Pigott stated that the administration is still determining the way forward regarding the supplies. He added that some of the supplies, bought by the previous administration, could "potentially be" drugs designed to induce abortions. This claim has sparked further controversy, with campaigners arguing that the supplies are solely for contraceptive purposes.
As the situation unfolds, it is crucial to note that the EU's broader stockpiling plans do not appear to involve or intersect with the U.S.-funded contraceptive stockpile in Belgium. The future of these vital supplies remains uncertain, and the world watches as advocates continue their efforts to save them from destruction.
Reporting by Leicester from Paris, and Matthew Lee contributed from Washington, D.C.
References:
- EU stockpiling essential supplies for WW3
- Trump administration undermining sexual and reproductive health and rights
- European stockpile of USAID-funded contraceptives faces destruction
- The ongoing dispute over the U.S.-funded stockpile of contraceptives, valued at around $9.7 to $10 million, has raised concerns within global health and advocacy groups about politics interfering with reproductive health worldwide.
- Amidst efforts to prevent the destruction of these contraceptives, international organizations and NGOs, such as the U.S. branch of MSI Reproductive Choices, have offered to purchase and distribute them, citing the impact on women's health and health-and-wellness.
- In Seattle, science and technology companies have started discussing potential job opportunities in climate-friendly industries, as government policies shift towards promoting renewable energy sources.
- Meanwhile in Brussels, the European Union is reportedly stockpiling essential supplies for possible World War III, following the EU stockpiling essential supplies for WW3.
- The Federal Government has announced a legislative push for women's health, aiming to improve access to healthcare services, decrease maternal mortality rates, and create a more comprehensive approach to health-and-wellness, particularly in the area of womens-health.
