Services such as sexually transmitted disease testing and educational outreach at Athens' Planned Parenthood are at risk of being cut, the health center's officials said.
The Ohio House voted 59-32 Wednesday on legislation to defund Planned Parenthood health centers in the state.
The bill will now go to the desk of presidential candidate and Ohio Gov. John Kasich, who has said he supports the legislation.
If signed, the bill would redirect about $1.3 million in state funding from the state’s 28 Planned Parenthood health centers and other organizations that support or perform abortions in Ohio. That money would instead go toward the 280 federally qualified health centers in the state.
But what does that mean for Athens’ Planned Parenthood at 1005 E. State St.?
“Our doors will stay open,” Jocelyn Smallwood, a spokesperson for Planned Parenthood of Greater Ohio, said. “We will continue to do that for as long as we can and for as many people as we possibly can.”
Smallwood said it is hard to speculate what services will be diminished or cut, but confirms much of the Athens location’s state funding goes toward educational programs.
“The programs that are being impacted are ones that allow Planned Parenthood to go into the communities, especially in areas where people are under served,” she said. “Those will probably be cut, if not entirely, to a great degree.”
Last year, the Planned Parenthood in Athens served 979 patients for 1,758 STD tests, including 238 HIV tests, and supplied 304 patients with birth control, according to Kelly Novak, director of education and outreach for Planned Parenthood of Greater Ohio.
The Athens location does not perform abortions.
Planned Parenthood’s Personal Responsibility and Education Program, or PREP, is targeted toward Ohio’s foster youth and those in the juvenile system. It may be one of the services at risk due to defunding, Novak said in an email.
“If passed, this legislation would impact patients that receive services through Planned Parenthood throughout the state, including the Athens area,” she said.
Planned Parenthood provides the PREP program in more than 15 counties throughout southern Ohio, including Athens County. The program currently receives money through the Ohio Department of Health and offers information about healthy relationships, romantic involvement and financial literacy, among other topics.
Novak added that services for sexually transmitted disease prevention, breast and cervical cancer screenings, infant mortality programs and Violence Against Women Act programs may also be impacted by the legislation.
"Education is important, especially for young women, but there are alternatives," Anna Lippincott, an OU senior studying journalism and political science and president of the OU College Republicans, said. "There are different ways to get information. There are other health clinics that can provide information.”
Many of the medical services found at the Athens Planned Parenthood, such as STD screenings and emergency contraception, are also available to students through OU’s Campus Care, according to its website.
Ohio’s bill is not unlike legislation from other states across the country, Sarah Poggione, an associate professor of political science at OU, said.
“Based in part on the heavily edited videos targeting Planned Parenthood, 11 states including Ohio considered new legislation that would significantly reduce or restrict all funding for Planned Parenthood or any provider that offers abortion services in their network,” she said.
The videos, which were released in July by an anti-abortion group, reportedly show a Planned Parenthood worker discussing the sale of fetal tissue. Planned Parenthood has since filed a federal lawsuit against the organization and asserts the videos were edited.
The director of the group, David Daleiden, and another worker were indicted Jan. 25 by a Houston grand jury for their involvement in making the videos.
Cecilia Ellis, a junior studying English and women's, gender and sexuality studies, said she has gone to the Athens Planned Parenthood and prefers their service to other available options. She is also president of OU's chapter of Generation Action, a Planned Parenthood advocacy group.
"I’ve been there several times to get birth control refills and everyone there is super friendly," she said. "I've always had a really good experience with Planned Parenthood."
Lippincott said she supports the legislation to redirect funding, especially given the organization's scrutiny from the government at the state and national level.
"I think just right off the bat there's a huge misconception about what defunding Planned Parenthood actually does," Lippincott said. "It does redirect the money to other women's health clinics. It's not like the funding disappears. It's not like women's health stops.”
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