Columnist Haadiza Ogwude discusses the importance of Planned Parenthood services.
Ohio’s Republican-majority senate passed a bill Oct. 21 that banned Planned Parenthood from receiving any federal or state funds. Anti-abortion Ohio lawmakers made the decision to defund Planned Parenthood based on videos released by an anti-abortion group called the Center for Medical Progress. The videos featured heavily edited footage of taped conversations with Planned Parenthood officials.
Because of this senate decision, Planned Parenthood and other abortion care providers will be banned from receiving federal funds through programs including the Violence Against Women Act, the Breast and Cervical Cancer Mortality Prevention Act, the Minority AIDS Initiative, the Infant Mortality Reduction Initiative or infant vitality initiatives and the Personal Responsibility Education Program.
When I first heard about this senate decision, I was confused to say the least. Confused by the fact that in 2015, in a country where there is supposed “freedom” for all and the right to make our own decisions about our health and bodies, a nation where women have been fighting for reproductive rights for decades, are now being set back 50 years in a known to be, democratic state such as Ohio. Ohio, a state that recognized that women should have clinics where they can, if they so choose, to get a legal and safe abortion, as well as other gynecological services, now decided that women no longer have that right.
Although Ohio only had three Planned Parenthood clinics able to perform abortions to accommodate its roughly six million female residents to begin with, three was better than none. Now women of low socio-economic backgrounds will have zero resources for free/affordable reproductive health care. What’s worse is that Ohio is just the latest state to defund Planned Parenthood. A Texas agency announced recently that it would ban Planned Parenthood from participating in its Medicaid program as well.
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Jennifer Hamady, writer for Psychology Today states in a recent piece, “The Importance of Planned Parenthood,” that “not only does Planned Parenthood provide last minute appointments for those on tour or who travel for work. They provide free and drastically reduced gynecological services to those who might otherwise not get treatment, saving the lives of countless mothers and children. They provide affordable care for those who don't have, can't afford or have lost their health insurance. They provide counseling for women and girls who have been abused, raped, or are in the process of being bullied or pressured into sex. They provide education on hygiene and wellness. They provide screening and treatment for sexually transmitted diseases.”
The fact of the matter is whether or not you are in support of abortion. It cannot be denied that Planned Parenthood has various other programs and offers an array of services that can help save the lives of countless women and children. By defunding Planned Parenthood, they are not only unable to provide safe abortions, but they are also unable to provide other health services that can save the lives of thousands of women around the country.
Haadiza Ogwude is a sophomore studying journalism. What do you think of these recent laws? Tweet Haadiza @AdoreHaadiza or email her at ho299413@ohio.edu.
