Nearly seven pages of breast cancer-related content have been removed from the WomensHealth.gov site, which is run by HHS' Office on Women's Health, according to Medscape.
While the website still maintains a single page's worth of information about breast cancer, the majority of the content has been scrubbed. For example, information about an ACA mandate stipulating free breast cancer screenings for women who meet certain financial criteria has been deleted, according to the report.
An HHS spokesperson told the progressive news organization ThinkProgress the pages "were removed on December 6, 2017, because content was not mobile-friendly and very rarely used. Before we update any of the information … we engage in a comprehensive audit and use [an] analysis process that includes reviewing other federal consumer health websites to ensure we are not duplicating efforts or presenting redundant information."
However, critics of the move argue removing information used to help low-income women creates confusion and reflects more broadly on policies spearheaded by the Trump administration, according to the report.
"The specificity of these removals adds more evidence to a growing concern: that public information for vulnerable populations is being targeted for removal or simply hidden," according to a March report by the Sunlight Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to increasing transparency and accountability in government. "As we have highlighted before, the absence of transparent process around removing this information, which was done without notice, has sown further confusion."
To access the Medscape report, click here.