Glossary
PPNC: is an abbreviation for Planned parenthood nassau county
Hyde Amendment: federal funds cannot pay for abortion services
Non judgmental: to not judge another person for his or her decision
Defund: to take away money from programs or not allowing them to collect money from the government
Medicaid: is a program provided by the government to give older people and or people with a low income insurance
Vetoed: votes that block the decision
WHAT SERVICES DOES PLANNED PARENTHOOD PROVIDE?
Planned Parenthood provides a number of medical services like STI testing, birth control and many other things. Anne Mattson from the Register- Guard paper mentions that there are a variety of medical options provided at Planned Parenthood. Many of these services “receive federal funding that supports breast and cervical cancer screenings, and treatment for sexually transmitted infections.” These services are provided for low-income men, women, and young people who need help with their medical needs. Many people head to Planned Parenthood centers for birth control, STI testing and other medical needs like abortions. According to CNN news reporters, Debra Goldschmidt and Ashley Strickland, “[Planned Parenthood] estimates that 2.5 million women and men in the US visit its affiliate health centers for services and information each year.” This program helps so many people in the world who have low or middle incomes. If Planned Parenthood was no longer available, then men and women would have difficulties getting affordable medical help.
How has this program helped men and women?
Planned Parenthood has been there for men and women providing non-judgemental care during their medical needs. There are people in this world who won’t go to the doctors because they are afraid of being judged. According to Kathleen Rice, a Democrat from Garden City said, “For women of all ages — and men, for that matter — it means so much to know that there is somewhere you can go in your own community to get professional care and unbiased information and advice about reproductive health and health in general.” When you feel comfortable with your doctors it makes it easier to get the medical help you need and want. Planned Parenthood provides that sense of community for whoever wants to get unbiased medical assistances. Besides providing unbiased information, PP has also been there for people when they need to get a test done. Dr. Karen A. Scott, chief medical officer at the Department of Health and Human Services said, “this program will strengthen access to essential services like cancer screenings and contraception for some of the most vulnerable patients in this country.” Planned Parenthood is an advantage for low-income men and women because they can get tests done for cancer. They will no longer have to be unaware of the chance that they may or may not have cancer. Unfortunately, these benefits will no longer be available for low income citizens if the government decides to defund this program.
Why does the government want to stop funding planned parenthood?
The government no longer wants to provide medicaid for those who want to go to Planned Parenthood because they want to decrease the rate of abortions. According to Joerg Dreweke, the spokesman for Guttmacher Institute “told us its research shows unintended pregnancies decreasing by nearly 8 percent in Texas.” The government’s goal was to decrease the amount of abortions and unwanted pregnancies in the world to save babies lives. With Planned Parenthood no longer available in Texas the rate of unwanted pregnancies did decrease. The government seen that by defunding Planned Parenthood the abortion rate and unwanted pregnancies went down, which is why they want to defund more Planned Parenthood operations in every state. A majority of people wanted to continue down this path and save more babies lives. Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of Susan B. Anthony List said the people “expect Trump to reinstate Ronald Reagan’s Mexico City policy that prevents U.S. foreign aid recipients from promoting or performing abortions.” With this policy enacted once again there will be no way for anyone to get an abortion in the United States or any other country. The government and the pro-life community would no longer have to worry about any abortions happening around the world. By doing this the government and pro-life community would reach their goal of decreasing abortions and unwanted pregnancies. However, the government is not considering the negative outcomes to this issue.
What will happen if the program is defunded?
There are many possibilities on what will happen if Planned Parenthood is defunded. For example, there can be positive outcomes like abortions decreasing or there can also be negative outcomes like more unwanted pregnancies or more STIs among men, women and young people. Shortly after Texas defunded Planned Parenthood in the state, Indiana followed their lead and defunded Planned Parenthood, however it did not go as planned. According to the governor of Indiana, Mike Pence said “shortly thereafter [defunding Planned Parenthood there was] an HIV epidemic tied to intravenous drug use swept the county.” Pence had to order an emergency needle-exchange program to help the people during this health crisis. This happened to be a negative outcome from defunding Planned Parenthood in Indiana. Even though there was an HIV outbreak in Indiana doesn’t mean this will happen all around the world. Other states will have additional health programs besides PP. For example, Susan Michelle-Hanson from Live Action News said “everywhere a woman might seek out a Planned Parenthood, she can find a FQHC [Federally Qualified Health Centers].” All the medical needs women required before will be provided at FQHC, besides abortion services. FQHCs will benefit women and men more since they will also be in rural areas which means there is no need to travel to the nearest city. Men, women and young people will not be left without any medical treatment centers if Planned Parenthood happens to be defunded.
What can be done to stop this?
There can be laws passed to no longer allow government funds towards abortions at Planned Parenthood. Protest against this issue can also be done by those who do not agree with defunding Planned Parenthood. If there are laws passed that do not allow government funds to pay for abortions, then people from the pro-life community could give up on their efforts to defund Planned Parenthood. According to Anne Mattson from The Register-Guard newspaper, “for nearly four decades, the Hyde Amendment has banned the use of federal tax dollars for abortion services, with very narrow exceptions.” At Planned Parenthood abortions are paid out of pocket, so for those who are concerned about where their taxes go they can rest assure that they don’t go towards abortions. Another thing that can be done to stop Planned Parenthood from being defunded is protest against this issue. JoAnn Smith, PPNC’s president and CEO explained that, “PPNC has launched a public awareness campaign that’s focused on the value the services have to public health.” By showing the government and the pro-life community the importance of the services at Planned Parenthood, there is a better chance that the act to defund PP will be vetoed. If the act to defund Planned Parenthood is vetoed, then men, women, and young people will continue to get the medical help that they need at an affordable price.
Works cited
Calmes, Jackie. "Obama Bars States From Denying Federal Money to Planned Parenthood - The New York Times." The New York Times - Breaking News, World News & Multimedia, 14 Dec. 2016, www.nytimes.com/2016/12/14/us/politics/obama-administration-planned-parenthood.html. Accessed 24 Jan. 2017.
Curry, Colleen. "Planned Parenthood: What Will Happen If Congress Slashes Its Funding."Global Citizen. Global Citizen, 6 Jan. 2017. Web. 16 Feb. 2017.
Davis, Susan. "What You Need To Know About The Coming Fight Over Planned Parenthood Funding."NPR. NPR, 07 Jan. 2017. Web. 16 Feb. 2017.
Dejene, Mahalet. "Planned Parenthood, supporters unite against Pence Amendment. (Cover story)." New York Amsterdam News 03 Mar. 2011: 1+.Academic Search Premier. Web. 27 Jan. 2017.
Dias, Elizabeth. "Defund Planned Parenthood Plan Moves Forward in Congress."Time. Time, 7 Jan. 2017. Web. 16 Feb. 2017.
Mansmann, Julie. "Nassau Planned Parenthood braces for possible federal defunding."Herald Community Newspapers. 17 Jan. 2017. Web. 25 Jan. 2017.
Goldschmidt, Debra , and Ashley Strickland. "Planned Parenthood: Fast facts and revealing numbers."CNN. Cable News Network, 17 Jan. 2017. Web. 16 Feb. 2017.
Mattson, Anne. "Attacks on Planned Parenthood Put Lives at Risk." The Register- Guard Aug 18 2015 ProQuest. 26 Jan. 2017
Moines, Barbara Raife Des. "Defunding Planned Parenthood will increase abortions."Des Moines Register. 24 Jan. 2017. Web. 24 Jan. 2017.
Newsy. "How Planned Parenthood Gets Federal Funding." YouTube, 9 Jan. 2017, www.youtube.com/watchv=X4NO8OnueaU&spfreload=10&scrlybrkr=17ad88fa. Accessed 31 Jan. 2017.
Shepard, Steven, Madeline Conway, Rich Lowry, Michael A. Clemens, Jack Shafer, and Ben Schreckinger. "Poll: Voters favor Roe, oppose cutting Planned Parenthood funds."POLITICO. POLITICO, 27 Jan. 2017. Web. 16 Feb. 2017.
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