President Donald Trump proposed a victory for the pro-life movement in his 2018 fiscal budget by removing Planned Parenthood's federal funds. Between the American Health Care Act and this budget, the abortion corporation would receive no Medicaid reimbursement or government funding. Any group, Planned Parenthood or otherwise, is now barred from receiving appropriations from the Labor-HHS department, including Medicaid.
As expected, the left were in an uproar in defense of their precious abortion access for which they do not want to fund themselves. Planned Parenthood went on a Twitter storm, claiming that the Trump administration neglects women by defunding the organization. Cecile Richards cited her organization’s contraceptive services for women under Title X, claiming Planned Parenthood serves 41 percent of contraceptive patients. In all irony, the number one abortion provider in America tweeted a jab at President Trump, citing Medicaid covering births:
This will disproportionately hurt women: 1 in 5 rely on Medicaid for preventative care and it covers almost HALF of all births. #HandsOff
— Planned Parenthood (@PPact) May 24, 2017
The abortion industry is right: no president has done this before. Proponents love to spout the narrative that the Hyde Amendment bars taxpayer funds from going to abortions, but the Trump administration knows that to be false. The Hyde Amendment is not strong enough a measure; despite what the abortion industry wants voters to think, American taxpayers do not like abortion, and therefore any organization that performs those services should receive no federal funding. A Knights of Columbus/Marist poll shows that 59 percent (6/10) of Americans believe that abortion is morally wrong. Even if no taxpayer dollars touched any abortion services, which has never been proven, American taxpayers should not be obligated to fund an organization which has abortion at the center of their business model. Abortion advocates just cannot stand the idea of paying for their own abortion services.
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What the left does not tell its followers is that although President Trump proposed that federal funding for abortion entities be eliminated, those taxpayer dollars would be redirected to health centers that not only do not perform controversial abortion services, but also are more comprehensive than Planned Parenthood. The abortion giant doesn’t actually provide the services it claims to. No Planned Parenthood location provides mammograms and very few give prenatal care; employees focus on increasing revenue by pushing for more abortions. The organization even had clinics that were “abortion only.”
Across the country, there are 13,450 Federally Qualified Health Centers and Rural Health Centers, versus 665 Planned Parenthood locations.The organization’s website breaks down Planned Parenthood’s services: contraception, STI testing, abortion and “other services” all encompassed what the organization does. Aside from abortion, FQHCs provide those reproductive services plus non-reproductive, necessary care, so there is no real reason that Planned Parenthood is a better option for women.
FQHCs are more accessible, provide a wider-range of care services and do not pressure women into ending their pregnancies. Federally Qualified Health Centers are the real pro-choice option.
If the real priority for the left was women’s health care, the abortion proponents would have no issue with President Trump redirecting taxpayer funds toward health centers that do not provide abortion. Quality health care for women has never been the priority; American women deserve better than what Planned Parenthood offers.
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