THE WEDNESDAY STOPP REPORT

Focus on Ohio

The fight against Planned Parenthood is raging all across the United States. We have seen an increasing uneasiness at Planned Parenthood because of its slipping popularity among the general public. It may always have the support of rich, population control foundations and corporate executives, but it is losing the average American and that has Planned Parenthood worried.

In this week’s Wednesday STOPP Report, we will tell you of one initiative in Ohio by ordinary citizens that is beginning to have a major effect on Planned Parenthood.

Planned Parenthood in Ohio – December 2005

In American Life League’s 2005 annual survey of all the Planned Parenthood facilities in the country:

• Ohio ranked sixth, with 39 clinics.
• The clinics are operated by a total of nine PP affiliates in the state.
• Three of the clinics (Columbus, Cleveland and Cincinnati) commit surgical, medical and chemical abortions.
• The remaining 36 do chemical abortions.

Ohio legislation takes state money away from Planned Parenthood

As is the case all across America, ordinary citizens are upset with all the tax money going to Planned Parenthood. People in Ohio decided to do something about it. In 2002 and 2003, Ohio Right to Life worked to redefine the use of family planning money in the state.

Their first step was to convert the “family planning” program into a “women’s health” program. This was done to reflect the fact that family planning was more than just providing birth control, but needs to be a more comprehensive program for women. This language change provided funding for all of the current family planning services, but called them “women’s health services.”

Then, in 2003, a bill was passed which became effective on January 1, 2004. It contained the following language:

In distributing these grant funds, the Director of Health shall give priority to grant requests from local departments of health for women's health services to be provided directly by personnel of the local department of health. Prior to the effective date of this section, the Director of Health shall issue a single request for proposals for all grants under this set-aside. The Director of Health shall send a notification of this request for proposals to every local department of health in this state and shall place a notification on the department's web site. The Director shall allow at least 30 days after issuing this notification before closing the period to receive applications.

After the closing date for receiving grant applications, the Director of Health shall first consider grant applications from local departments of health that apply for grants for women's health services to be provided directly by personnel of the local department of health. Local departments of health that apply for grants for women's health services to be provided directly by personnel of the local department of health need not provide all the listed women's health services in order to qualify for a grant. However, in prioritizing awards among local departments of health that qualify for funding under this paragraph, the Director of Health may consider, among other reasonable factors, the comprehensiveness of the women's health services to be offered, provided that no local department of health shall be discriminated against in the process of awarding these grant funds because the applicant does not provide contraception.

If funds remain after awarding grants to all local departments of health that qualify for the priority, the Director of Health may make grants to other applicants. Awards to other applicants may be made to those applicants that will offer all eight of the listed women's health services or that will offer all of the services except contraception. No applicant shall be discriminated against in the process of awarding these grant funds because the applicant does not provide contraception.

Ohio Right to Life’s purpose in supporting legislation giving priority to local health departments rather than Planned Parenthood or another outside agency is that local health departments were a better choice for receiving these funds because they were less controversial, had a history of serving low income women and faced tighter budgets than Ohio Planned Parenthood affiliates.

Thus, beginning in 2004, funds began to be shifted from Planned Parenthood affiliates in the state to local health departments. Now this did not cut off all taxpayer money to Planned Parenthood. PP still received federal money and some local health departments actually hired Planned Parenthood to provide the services. But Planned Parenthood began receiving less funding and, as the next item shows, is starting to feel the impact.

Planned Parenthood begins closing Ohio clinics

In December 2003, just as the funding cuts were about to start, Planned Parenthood announced the closing of its facility in London, Ohio. Then, in 2004 and 2005, Planned Parenthood closed facilities in Calcutta and Marion.

Just this past week, Planned Parenthood of Southeast Ohio announced that it is permanently closing its clinics in Chillicothe and Jackson this Saturday, July 1.

According to an article published in the Athens News on June 22, the closings were caused by the state funding cuts since 2003:

“PPSEO has received cuts in state and federal funding over the last three years, and those cuts have forced changes,” Beth Lonn, director of patient services of Planned Parenthood of Central Ohio, said. “The funding cuts have reduced the PPSEO budget by more than half, eliminating more than $100,000,” she said. “The federal funding,” she added, “has remained flat for PPSEO, but it acts as a cut because costs to provide services have gone up while federal funding has remained the same.”

These latest developments have driven PPSEO out of the clinic business. Although the organization will still exist, for now, as a fund raising entity, the operation of its last remaining clinic in Athens will be taken over by Planned Parenthood of Central Ohio.

Congratulations to Ohio Right to Life and all the dedicated pro-lifers in Ohio, including American Life League’s associate group, Pro-Life Ohio, for your tireless work in fighting Planned Parenthood.

Will your state be next?

Of course, the fight against Planned Parenthood in Ohio is a long way from being over. PP still operates three dozen clinics in the state and is still killing children. But the steps to end state funding of PP are beginning to take its toll on PP’s operations, and that is a good thing.

American Life League’s researchers have been contacting every state in the country to determine how much state money goes to Planned Parenthood. So far, five states (Idaho, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Utah and West Virginia) tell us that they do not give any state money to Planned Parenthood. Other states, like Ohio, Texas and Colorado have begun taking state money away from PP.

Now is the time to put a stop to taxpayer funding of Planned Parenthood in your state. If you have legislators who want to de-fund Planned Parenthood, please send us their contact information and we will put them in touch with legislators in other states who are also interested in stopping the funding. Send the information to STOPP.

If you are not sure if your legislators are opposed to Planned Parenthood, then ask them. This is an election year and no candidate for any office should ever be allowed to finish talking with you until you clearly understand where he or she stands on taxpayer funding of Planned Parenthood.

Please sign our online petition and let’s get all taxpayer money taken from Planned Parenthood.

Back issues of the Wednesday STOPP Report.