Earlier this week, the Trump administration announced a new plan for increasing birth rates in the U.S. [1] Among the ideas proposed: government-funded menstrual education so menstruators can better understand when they’ll be able to conceive.

What makes the situation even more infuriating is that solutions—like childcare, expanded access to healthcare, Medicaid, and paid family and medical leave—are known and very possible. Yet the Trump administration is doing the exact opposite of working to fix the situation.

And that’s not even the worst of it. Unbelievably, at the same time that the White House announced these so-called “birth incentives,” Republican leadership in Congress and President Trump are moving a budget proposal that includes $880 billion in devastating cuts to Medicaid—an essential program that covers the healthcare of more than 72 million people and more than 40% of births, keeps the doors of rural hospitals and maternity wards open, and more. [2] [3]

There’s even more bad news coming out of the Trump administration: DOGE is attacking maternal health access. Further, rumors are that Trump is going to defund Head Start, a critical childcare program, in 2026, and Trump is trying to shutter the U.S. Department of Education. Moreover, Trump is taking away legal status from immigrants, who are the parents of one out of every four children in America. [4]

That’s not even the end of the attacks on moms and families: Congressional Republicans are poised to slash funding for Medicaid, SNAP, school meals, and other programs families with kids need to thrive and our economy needs to stay steady.

The hypocrisy is glaring—but we know the solutions exist. Moms have long fought for care policies (like childcare and eldercare, paid family/medical leave, fair pay, and healthcare) that boost the economy, close wage gaps, and make it easier to have kids, raise them, work, and support our communities. But instead of passing these solutions, Trump and Republican leadership in Congress are undermining moms.

Moms are paying attention. We know that one-time baby bonuses are no substitute for the refundable monthly Child Tax Credit reinstated, a program which was proven to be effective when previously passed and implemented.

We know that Fulbright scholarships for a few married moms are no substitute for measures like childcare and Head Start that provide opportunities for parents and caregivers, which this administration is trying to cut.

We also know that menstrual education is no substitute for the health care access and reproductive freedom this administration has taken away from tens of millions of U.S. women.

And one more thing on menstrual education—it’s absurd, and even insulting, to suggest that women aren’t having more children because they don’t understand their own menstrual cycles. Full stop. Instead, we need bodily autonomy, an end to their attacks on our reproductive healthcare, fertility services, family planning support, Medicaid, and equitable maternal healthcare—and to get moving on building the care infrastructure that Trump and Republican leadership have long been blocking.

Leaders who want families to have more babies should support the care policies that we know will help families and businesses thrive. For families to have more children, first we need to become a family-friendly country.

-Kristin, Olivia, Donna, Ruth, Tina, and the whole MomsRising.org & MamásConPoder Team

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