Effect of Recent Rulings on Anti-Prostitution Pledge Unknown, Editorial Says

Following the recent rulings by federal judges in the District of Columbia and New York state that declared unconstitutional a 2003 U.S. policy requiring recipients of federal HIV/AIDS service grants to pledge to oppose commercial sex work, "[i]t remains to be seen whether the government will now stop trying to impose the pledge on other groups," a New York Times editorial says. Although the rulings have "vindicated" the First Amendment right to free speech, it is unknown how many global health groups will "feel emboldened to rescind pledges they have already signed," according to the editorial. Although the restriction still applies when spending federal funds, the rulings have "remov[ed] at least one impediment" for groups aiming to reach high-risk populations and "save lives," the editorial says (New York Times, 6/2).

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