Report: CDC receives list of forbidden words, including ‘fetus,’ ‘transgender’
ATLANTA, GA (WCMH) – A new report says policy analysts at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention were given a list of seven words they cannot use in official documents related to the agency’s 2019 budget.
According to the Washington Post, the analysts met with senior CDC officials on Thursday where they were told they could no longer use the words “fetus,” “transgender,” “diversity,” evidence-based,” “science-based,” or “entitlement.” The analysts were not told why those specific words were being banned, and analysts were given alternative phrases to use in some cases but not in others.
Several of the banned words relate directly to the CDC’s work, such as research about the Zika virus on developing fetuses and HIV prevention among the transgender community.
The move comes after several departments in the Trump administration – including the Department of Health and Human Services – have removed information and stopped collecting data about the LGBT community and other topics that previously received increased visibility under the Obama administration.
The CDC has not returned a request for comment at the time of this writing.