Statement of Issue
Donald Trump has recently joined other Republicans in their vow to end federal funding for Planned Parenthood, solely based on the idea that Planned Parenthood health care services are provided for patients to receive an abortion. The percentage of abortions that Planned Parenthood actually does are less than 3%. Taking funds away from Planned Parenthood creates a problem to America. Due to the fact that Planned Parenthood provides high quality health care for men, women, and young people, and to improve sexual health and well beings in individuals and promotes sexual health education. The lack of funding to Planned Parenthood will be harmful to a lot individuals that use Planned Parenthood whether for birth control, pat smear, use of abortions, and other health care services.They provide services to 2.7 million people in the world which are majorly of those that stay in lower income communities and Planned Parenthood is a primary source of health care for their patients.
- Aim: My aim for this policy brief is provide information on how Planned Parenthood provides a helping hand to the communities through the many different education programs and services. Also, to showcase the impact that Planned Parenthood has on so many individuals lives and how not funding them will change those individual’s lives in a drastic ways.
Policy Myths:
Planned Parenthood is only used by women.
- Belief that only women are being served at Planned Parenthood. When in reality, in the year 2014, Planned Parenthoods nationwide provided vasectomies to 3,445 men.
Defunding Planned Parenthood would benefit taxpayers
- Without the necessary and low-cost health care available at PP, Medicaid spending would actually go up for the federal government and taxpayers
- Defunding Planned Parenthood would cause Medicaid spending to increase by $650 million over ten years.
Private funds will be able to keep Planned Parenthood open
- The federal funding that Planned Parenthood receives is largely through Medicaid reimbursements
- Over 40 percent of Planned Parenthood’s funding comes from federal, state, and local funds. That makes up about $553 million of Planned Parenthood’s annual budget, while private donors (from its 2014–2015 report) account for only $353 million a year.
- Without federal funding, Planned Parenthood would have little chance of survival in communities where a large majority of patients rely on the government’s Medicaid and Title X grants. Planned Parenthood’s yearly expenses are upwards of $12 billion, and 82 percent of those expenses go to client services, education, and research.
Abortion is the primary usage of Planned Parenthood.
- Parenthood as an organization that exists for the sole purpose of blithely doling out abortions to all who walk through their doors, abortion accounts for only 3 percent of the organization’s health-care services
Policy Recommendation:
Although the government has decided to take federal funding away from Planned Parenthood, it is necessary that they keep Planned Parenthood open until they find a more alternative to it for patients whom depend on Planned Parenthood as a primary source of health services. Majorly of Planned Parenthood patients are from lower income communities that do not have other options to go if Planned Parenthood was to be shut down. The government should take a further indepth look as to how shutting Planned Parenthood could have drastic effect on the individual’s lives, whether they have use Planned Parenthood before or not. First action set, is getting signed up for Planned Parenthood emails, rallies, and events. Secondly, schedule an appointment at Planned Parenthood to learn of all the services that they provide and that are beneficial to your life. Thirdly, begin to share your experience at Planned Parenthood and share your story of how impactful it was on your life. Then, begin to help donate to Planned Parenthood or even fundraiser to help them receive funding. After, you can start speaking more freely on social sites and become active in spreading the word of bringing funding back to Planned Parenthood.