In Claire Sanderson’s recent article, “Bill poised to cut funding for family planning” (CT, March 3), Matthew Hurt, chair of the Virginia Tech College Republicans, claims people can go to the Pregnancy Resource Center of Blacksburg for the same services Planned Parenthood offers under Title X funding. However, local crisis pregnancy centers such as PRC do not and often cannot offer the same services as medically licensed clinics such as Planned Parenthood.
Cutting Title X funding for Planned Parenthood would do a great disservice to women’s health. Despite the frequent misinformation from anti-choice officials, Planned Parenthood’s Title X funding cannot go to abortion services, but it instead supports basic health care services, especially to low-income women. The elimination of vital providers such as Planned Parenthood would create an incredible gap in comprehensive care and service.
Mr. Hurt would have the Blacksburg PRC fill the gap. Sadly, he is not alone. In fact, many reckless, out-of-touch legislators want to force women to visit CPCs instead of comprehensive reproductive service providers. As a bit of background, CPCs are faith-based organizations that are anti-choice, anti-contraception and anti-premarital sex. They are generally not medically licensed clinics (unlike Planned Parenthood), and many do not have doctors or nurses on staff.
Yet recently legislators in South Dakota passed legislation, forcing women considering an abortion to meet with a counselor at a CPC before she may obtain the procedure. If we rely on CPCs for pregnancy counseling, the gap left by providers such as Planned Parenthood will be filled with biased and shaming counseling, counseling that does not meet where a woman is in her life.
Most importantly, CPCs cannot fill the health care gap left if Planned Parenthood lost Title X funding. Crisis pregnancy centers cannot provide services such as screening and treatment for sexually transmitted diseases, basic gynecological exams (Pap smears, for example), breast exams, as well as other basic health care services Planned Parenthood provides. Additionally, CPCs cannot dispense birth control, and
they refuse to offer referrals for contraception.
Sanderson’s article mentions PRC offers free pregnancy testing. However, the pregnancy tests PRC offers are not clinical pregnancy tests and are no more accurate than the tests one can buy at a local pharmacy such as CVS. Under Title X funding, Planned Parenthood is able to offer clinical pregnancy tests, which are far more accurate.
Women deserve sustained access to affordable and comprehensive family planning options. Eliminating funding for such programs effectively cuts low-income women out of health care and creates a two-tier system of service — those who can afford good health care and those who cannot.
Proposing and passing policy based solely on one’s views of abortion will ultimately hinder (or eliminate) women’s access to basic health care services such as HPV and Hepatitis vaccines, breast exams, HIV testing, emergency contraception, pregnancy testing, health education and more. (Not to mention it will also be detriment to men’s health services such as STI testing and treatment and access to vasectomy.)
These are services that anti-choice CPCs either cannot or will not provide. That is why it is vital family planning. Basic health and sexual health services remain affordable and accessible to people of all income levels.
A version of this article appeared in the Mar 18 issue of the Collegiate Times.
Leave a comment 21 Comments Write a letter to the editor
All letters to the editor must include a name, e-mail, daytime phone number and affiliation to Virginia Tech. Affiliation includes: year and major for students; position and department for faculty and staff; current city for alumni and parents.
WTF is with this chick and the CT? EVER OTHER ARTICLE OF HERS IS PRO PLANNED PARENTHOOD. Since when did the CT allow columnists to advertise to a company or organization every freaking article? This is getting ridiculous.
Reply to this Top
She is merely drawing the line between legitimate sexual health centers (like Planned Parenthood) and the ones that are a huge farce...calling themselves health centers when there is no one in attendance with any health certification.
A pretty important distintion, I would say.
Reply to this Top
You mean she is saying the same thing that has already been written about before. This is what the person was commenting about, not the agenda that you keep pushing.
Top
"calling themselves health centers when there is no one in attendance with any health certification."
actually. this is very far from the truth. I have checked into this. have you? If you had, you'd have found that they indeed do have RN's on staff and operate under a medical license.
Top
If PP is a comprehensive health then why can't I get a blood pressure test or a blood test for diabetes screening? They exist to abort babies or hand out condoms. Some healthcare!!!
Reply to this Top
WTF is with this person? Women don't deserve actual DOCTORS, they just need PRAYER.
Reply to this Top
Well, there is that one study that found when people are being prayed for ( and know they are) they do better than people who don't have anyone praying for them.
Reply to this Top
Nice job citing the study. I definitely believe that prayer works now.
Top
Actually the little research done on this important strategy for health care shows that you are more likely to have complications from heart surgery if you are prayed for. So if you want someone to die, get infections, have heart attacks, etc., tell them you will pray for them and then get busy!
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16569567
Top
If we could just get away from the premise that everyone deserves to have everything for free all the time no matter what, this argument wouldn't even exist. Birth control is available to EVERYONE. Pay for it. There are tons of doctors and providers out there. If you can't pay for it, don't get pregnant. This is 2011. We know where babies come from and how they get there. This isn't rocket science. No one is entitled to birth control.
Reply to this Top
If you can't pay for it [birth control], don't get pregnant. What a well reasoned argument.
Reply to this Top
I thought title X was for woman who could not afford birth control, can get it at low cost or free. What are the income guildlines?
Top
Planned Parenthood
With apologies to Joyce Kilmer, author of Trees
I thought that I would never see
A program sacred as P.P.
A program that Barack will back
Against the GOP attack.
A program Biden will defend
Against the budget cutting trend.
A program for which Nancy fights
Beneath the flag of women's rights.
A program for which Harry Reid
Would shutter government indeed.
When deficits begin to squeeze
We see their true priorities.
While other programs come and go
This sacred cow must stay just so.
thebardofmurdock.blogspot.com
Reply to this Top
I think Ms. Kilmer deserves a better apology.
Reply to this Top
Ms. Dwyer,
based on a recent phone conversation with a Planned Parenthood Staff member they use pregnancy tests that are 'just like the ones you buy at CVS or another pharmacy'.
this only make your argument weaker.
as does the fact that the PRC provides free "comprehensive family planning options. "
the list goes on, but I won't continue.
Reply to this Top
Md Dwyer according to her FaceBook page belongs to the National Abortion Rights Advocacy League (NARAL) which is the # 1 pro abortion organization in the USA, and works at Planned Parenthood as a hand holder for women going through the abortion process. Both of these organizations are threatened by PRCs especially PP whose bottom line is adversely effected if a woman chooses not to abort. The PRC administers "clinical" pregnancy tests for FREE and PP charges $30 for the same service. Thank you PRC! By the way their tests are valid for Medicaid verification Ms. Dwyer so there goes your slanted argument against the quality of the PRC tests. Perhaps you should report them to the government because your precious PP doesn't get the $30 they so richly deserve along with all of our tax $$$$. If PP is so benevolent why do they make such a huge profit on pregnancy tests anyways. I can bet the cost of goods to them is only a few dollars. They are the ones on the public teat not the PRC. Get a life Ms. Dwyer or a cause that is beneficial to life vs. one that is adverse ti it.
Reply to this Top
If you want a republican to care about your rights, stay a fetus. Once born, if born a woman, they'll still allow you to have 'rights,' just as long as your 'rights' don't offer you any actual choices involving your body.
Reply to this Top
Women have plenty of rights. No one is holding them down and impregnating them. If you make the CHOICE of having sex you need to be responsible for the consequences that come from it. Once that child is conceived, it's no longer "your" body - that baby has a distinct genetic code 100% different from your own. It's not your body. It may be within your body, but it's not your body. Exercise your right to "choose" and "choose" not to become pregnant. This fight for "choice" only comes about AFTER you've already gotten pregnant.
Top
Jochebed, I sincerely hope you're just trollin..."that baby has a distinct genetic code 100% different from your own". lol
Top
If she works at Planned Parenthood, isn't that some kind of a conflict of interest? Shame on her for not disclosing and shame on the Collegiate Times for allowing her to write this piece.
Reply to this Top
Title X Funding has prevented over 20,000,000 unwanted pregnancies over the past 2 decades. How would we, as a society, be paying for all those children if they had been born? If women below the poverty level in many rural areas of the country no longer have access to their main source of health care, how do they get tested for HIV, cervical cancer, and breast cancer? Title X funding is also used for men's health, including prostate cancer and STD screening. If people have and spread more STDs and have more incidents of advanced cancer because it wasn't caught early and treated, wouldn't that drive up the cost of health care? Or are we such a "caring" society that we believe those people should just die? Fiscally Title X funding has proven to be a money saver. Title X funding is not allowed to be used for abortions. I don't understand how cutting the funds makes fiscal sense.
Top