Most of us (hopefully) are aware of the fact that a vote was held in the Seante last week in reference to the Planned Parenthood funding conflict. Under President Obama, states were not allowed to defund Planned Parenthood. The new White House administration has planned to create a resolution to this particular rule, which brings us to the Senate vote – it was a tie. A freaking tie. Vice President Mike Pence stepped in and cast the deciding vote in favor of the resolution. So what does this mean for Planned Parenthood and women’s health?
For starters, the inevitability of mass Planned Parenthood closings is palpable. Majorly conservative states are bound to cut funding. Well, there is only one answer to the question of why Republicans have been pushing to defund women’s health clinics like Planned Parenthood for decades: legal abortion services.
Here are just a few Planned Parenthood services OTHER THAN abortion women will lose access to:
- Several birth control options (BC pills/patch/shot, IUD, condom, diaphragm, etc.)
- General health care (physical examination, flu vaccinations, diabetes/thyroid/cholestorol/blood pressure screening, etc.)
- Women’s health information (UTI treatment and prevention, female infertility, menopause and menstruation, yeast infection, vaginitis, etc.)
- Pregnancy information and products (pregnancy tests, prenatal care, Zika virus, etc.)
- STD prevention and treatment (‘nuf said)
- Men’s health information and treatment (yeah, you read that right)
But hey, who cares or needs any of that anyway? *extreme sarcasm*
And here are a few sexual and women’s health facts for thought:
- More the 50% of Americans contract an STD or STI at some point in their lives
- Abortions have above a 99% safety record which makes it one of the safest medical procedures performed in the U.S.
- 2 in 100 condoms are likely to break during sexually activity
- Nearly 1 in 3 women diagnosed with HPV may recover in less than 6 months
- Abortions account for only 3% of the services performed or carried out at Planned Parenthood
As per that last fact – why defund Planned Parenthood? It is a medical clinic for the benefit of the American population.
Ladies, and men who care about their ladies, I encourage you to contact your representatives if you’re worried about how this matter will affect you and those around you. You can learn more about Planned Parenthood and everything it has to offer at https://www.plannedparenthood.org/.