Parenthood Should Continue Funding Planned Parenthood

The “Planned Parenthood Federation of America” is a non profit organization, funded by the Federal Government, in which it provides reproductive/maternal health services among the United States as well as internationally, since 1952. In recent news developments, there have been rumors that Planned Parenthood practices “inhumane” procedures when aborting an unborn baby to harvest their organs and that a law should be passed to stop this. The supporters for Planned Parenthood claim that these claims are unfounded and believe that Planned Parenthood is a wonderful association that helps women and men all around the world. This issue has caused a series of debates that have been going on for years, but Planned Parenthood still lives on.

Planned Parenthood is a controversial topic sweeping the nation of America with political and moral issues. Every day one could come across a new article on it, stubble upon a news article in their local paper or even on their local news station. Planned Parenthood directly provides reproductive health services, is involved in teach young students about sexual education, contributes to research in reproductive technology, and interacts with legal and political efforts aimed at protecting and developing reproductive rights.

Planned Parenthood is a widely known nonprofit organization. They are the health care provider for millions of people within our nation. When people hear the words Planned Parenthood they automatically assume abortion. Yes, abortion is a service that they offer yet, they deliver much more than that. They deliver and educate us about birth control, cancer, men and women’s sexual health, pregnancy, sexual orientation and offer the Morning-After Pill (emergency contraception) and sexually transmitted disease screenings. Planned Parenthood is a large organization. “Planned Parenthood consists of 159 medical and non-medical affiliates, which operate over 650 health clinics in the United States. It partners with organizations in 12 countries

Many who are against PP want you to believe exactly that and nothing more. The reality of the matter though, is that 0% of money that is being funded by the government is legally allowed to go towards abortions. Every dollar that the government funds towards Planned Parenthood helps men and women pay for HIV/STI testing, different types of birth control, annual exams and screenings for life threatening

Planned Parenthood is an organization that provides healthcare and education to both men and women, having over 650 health centers that provide healthcare to countless communities around the world. Shockingly, 78% of those who use Planned Parenthoods services live at or below 150% of the federal poverty line, showing how important this organization is to low-income families (Topulos, Greene, Drazen). Their mission statement is “A Reason for Being”, which is shown through their efforts to provide health care, advocate public policies, create educational programs, and endorse research. There are those who do not believe Planned Parenthood should be funded by the government, though, due to the fact that they provide abortions to women in need. Studies show that the effects of not having Planned Parenthood available are disastrous, causing low-income families to lack a healthcare provider and the number of those who are infected with STD’s and STI’s to rise. The biggest concern communities have about the government defunding Planned Parenthood is the effects that it would have on low-income families who would no longer have access to something that many people take for granted: health care. Although many believe that Planned Parenthood mostly provides abortions, in reality, only 3% of the people that seek help from them receive an abortion, while 97% receive affordable and, in many cases,

Abortions only make up three percent of the procedures done at Planned Parenthood clinics (“2014 2015 Annual Report”). There are a variety of other life saving and essential health care procedures done at the clinics, such as STD and STI testing, pregnancy tests, contraception, exams, and other health issues relating to both men and women. Many people believe that the federal government should defund planned parenthood; however, this would make it almost impossible for many low-income individuals to receive the care that they need. The federal government should not defund Planned Parenthood (PP) because abortion is not a valid reason for opposing funding because it is allowed by law, low-income individuals and families need the affordable

“Nothing matters.” That quote attributed to Ambrose Bierce may be true in some cases. It may be true to those who do not value the funding of Planned Parenthood. But something does matter. And that is the funding of the healthcare resource Planned Parenthood. Many do not understand the vital role Planned Parenthood plays in the lives of up and coming parents. Planned Parenthood has been operating and serving those in need of care in the United States and overseas for more than 40 years (“Planned Parenthood Global”). Planned Parenthood has vowed in their mission statement:

Since many believe that Planned Parenthood only performs abortions, a frenzy against it has been created. “We don’t want to commit taxpayer funding for abortions, and Planned Parenthood is the largest abortion provider” (Strickland quoting Paul Ryan, 2017). Republicans rather see federal funding go towards federal community centers. However, to clarify this misconception we need to look at what federal funding is going towards. Planned Parenthood receives its funding from Medicaid reimbursements (Berg, 2017). They do not keep any hidden money, or have money put aside to preform free abortions. As the federal money that comes in goes straight towards helping patients.

"Planned Parenthood is the nation's largest provider of sexual and reproductive healthcare, providing birth control, pap smears, sexually transmitted infection (STI) testing and pregnancy tests to 5 million people each year. It has an annual budget of $800 million, 860 clinics, at least one representative in each state and enough members and staff that its reach into the grassroots is unmatched by any other entity fighting for reproductive freedom and women's equality" (Conniff, 2012).

It is said that Planned Parenthood has plenty of money, as reported in an article in the Washington Post (2008), “in 2005-2006 it took in nearly $1 billion and boasted a surplus of $55 million. More than one-third of its income $305 million came from government subsidies.” Also, in 2005-2006 was performing more abortions than ever 264,943. This brings in almost one third of the $345 million in revenue.

Planned Parenthood should not be defunded because more than 2 million people would be without basic healthcare ("What It Really Means to "Defund" Planned Parenthood."). Although skeptics have the concern that Planned Parenthood is just an abortion clinic, they provide far more, including, family planning, contraceptives, STI testing, cancer screenings, and many other basic health services for women, men and youth, especially those below the poverty line.

Millions of taxpayer dollars are going to fund Planned Parenthood. Along with the Obamacare introduction, Planned Parenthood has become a secondary cost to make sure women have health care throughout the United States. Along with the wasted money being spent, Planned Parenthood has other issues. The high cost of administration and the sale of fetus tissue and organs have become the latest in an agency out of control. Because of the wasteful administration of funds and ethical questions about disposing of fetuses, Planned Parenthood should no longer be funded by the Federal government.

Many conservative politicians and their supporters think otherwise, but that’s due to a lack of research and bias toward pro-life beliefs. The remaining 97 percent is spent on services such as STI/STD testing and treatment, cancer screening and prevention, pregnancy tests, and adoption referrals. Almost all services offered at Planned Parenthood are free and the organization doesn't depend on profit from customers. According to the Guttmacher Institute, an authority on reproductive health, “Every $1 of public money invested in family planning saves nearly $4 down the line by keeping patients healthy so they don't require costly medical treatments and procedures” (Nixon & Eigenberg). In other words, there are many ways that Planned Parenthood prevents unnecessary government funding for procedures that are more costly and could be easily

From their latest annual report from 2010, the organization accounted for providing 11 million health services for about 3 million people and helped prevent 584,000 unintended pregnancies (Planned). They also noted in their annual report they mentioned that most of their customers have an income levels at or below 150% of the federal poverty level (Planned). In the pie chart of the report it notes the percentages of the services provided for 2010, were: contraception’s representing 33.5%, STD’s treating and testing represented 38%, cancer screening and prevention at 14.5%, other women’s health services representing 10.4%, other Services representing 0.6%, and lastly abortions representing 3% of services that were provided (Planned). The current President of Planned Parenthood is Cecile Richards and the organization currently has 820 locations nationwide (Planned). Planned Parenthood is the biggest organization when it comes to reproductive services and has made many leaps and bounds to try and help women and families, and is still currently doing so. Some however believe that what they are doing is still morally wrong because of one services provided, which happens to be abortion.

Only 3% of PP's services goes to (safe) abortions. The other 97% goes to AFFORDABLE contraceptives, STD testing, cancer screenings, etc. There is a plethora of stories of women who were helped by Planned Parenthood.