On January 22, 2001 - his second day in office - President George W. Bush announced the reinstatement of the restrictions on overseas health care organizations in effect during the mid-1980s and early 1990s, commonly known as the "Mexico City Policy." The policy reversal has had serious ramifications for U.S. support for international family planning and reproductive health programs around the world.

The Global Gag Rule was reinstated by President George W. Bush on his first day in office in January 2001. Officially termed the Mexico City Policy, these restrictions mandate that no U.S. family planning assistance can be provided to foreign NGOs that use funding from any other source to: perform abortions in cases other than a threat to the woman's life, rape or incest; provide counseling and referral for abortion; or lobby to make abortion legal or more available in their country.

The Mexico City Policy, also known as the Global Gag Rule, was reinstated in 2001.It is a complicated policy for which explanations are rarely brief. Consequently, it is widely misunderstood and often over-interpreted. Anecdotal evidence from the field strongly suggests that the Global Gag Rule restrictions on U.S. family planning assistance are being mistakenly applied to other U.S.Agency for International Development (USAID) accounts,especially U.S. assistance for HIV/AIDS prevention, treatment and care.