Planned Parenthood recently released its annual report, and the numbers are shocking. While the overturning of Roe v. Wade was an important milestone for the pro-life movement, abortion proponents continue to push for the destruction of the unborn at home and abroad. The Biden administration aided their efforts by increasing Title X’s family planning funds for abortion facilities while turning a blind eye to taxpayer-funded abortion. Now, we have the opportunity to reverse those destructive actions. With pro-life leaders in charge in Congress and an Administration that is undoing the pro-abortion policies of the Biden era, we have a real chance to turn the tide and defund the abortion industry.
Planned Parenthood’s report for 2023-2024 tracks “services” provided from October 1, 2022, to September 30, 2023. During that time, the non-profit reported performing 402,230 abortions, bringing the total number of abortions since 1970 to 10.1 million. Abortions made up 97.7% of Planned Parenthood’s so-called “pregnancy-related services.” At the same time, the number of actual healthcare services (other than abortion) that they provide has drastically decreased — cancer screenings are down 76%, pap smear testing is down 80%, and prenatal services are down 82%. Despite their annual budget being in the billions of dollars, they received $792.2 million in federal, state, and local taxpayer funds during this time. One has to wonder how such an organization can receive millions of our tax dollars, even though the Hyde Amendment (which prohibits taxpayer funding of abortion) is current law!
Many of the abortions Planned Parenthood reports to have “performed” were not surgical abortions done in their clinics but ghastly do-it-yourself “medication” abortions where drugs, like mifepristone, are shipped directly to a pregnant woman who is never even seen by a doctor or nurse. The Ethics and Public Policy Center recently released a study on abortion pills. They examined insurance information and found that the clinical trials conducted in the United States significantly underestimated the failure rate of these drugs. They found that the actual failure rate of the pill was double that claimed in the U.S. trial on which the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) relied when they weakened restrictions on mifepristone. Because of this high failure rate, women have often been forced to take additional doses to complete the abortion. This has increased adverse effects to 13%, causing many women to experience health and life-threatening complications. Biden’s FDA was derelict in not examining the real facts about DIY abortions.
It is not only abortion that is a priority for Planned Parenthood, but they also profit from the horrendous practice of providing “transgender services” to young people. The actual number of people who have been given hormones and/or puberty blockers or referred for surgery is unclear in the report. In one section of their report, they list transgender services under “Other Procedures,” which also includes WIC, infertility, and pediatric services. However, they are clear about their over 1.6 million telehealth appointments that include this type of “care.” The pro-life group Live Action investigated these online appointments that often result in prescribing cross-sex hormones. To no one’s surprise, teenagers were able to receive these life-altering drugs with same-day telehealth appointments and no prior documentation or therapy. Planned Parenthood is truly a shop of horrors.
But there is hope! This week, the House Energy and Commerce Committee released their portion of the reconciliation bill that includes a huge pro-life victory we have worked to get passed for decades. The language ensures that no Medicaid or Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) funds can be paid to non-profits or reproductive health facilities that perform abortions. This includes Planned Parenthood. Additionally, the bill stops Medicaid and CHIP funds from paying for transgender procedures on minors and bans Affordable Care Act insurance plans from paying for these procedures for all ages. For the first time in years, we have a real chance to defund the abortion industry.
In addition to defunding abortion here in our country, there is hope to crack down on funding the international abortion lobby. The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services held a budget hearing on Wednesday with HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. Representative Robert Aderholt (R-AL) asked him what HHS is doing to rectify the Biden administration’s unlawful funding of abortions overseas. Kennedy’s first response was that “every abortion is a tragedy.” He went on to say, “Under President Trump’s leadership, I have ended federal funding to… overseas programs that fund abortions or counsel abortions and we have withheld the Title X funding from NGOs that refuse to differentiate the funding streams so that the federal government and my agency can’t tell whether money is … being used for legitimate family planning issues…”
House and Senate Members are introducing additional bills to protect life. Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) plans to introduce a resolution naming June as “Life Month.” June 24th is the anniversary of the Supreme Court’s decision declaring that abortion is not a Constitutional right in the Dobbs case. The decision did not outlaw all abortions, so “Life Month” will be a reminder that more work remains to be done to protect the unborn. Also, Sen. James Lankford (R-OK) will reintroduce the Conscience Protection Act to ensure medical professionals aren’t forced to perform or participate in abortions. Republican Administrations have issued HHS regulations to protect conscience rights, but Congress should codify them in law, and this bill does just that.
It is imperative that abortion providers like Planned Parenthood not receive another federal taxpayer dollar. President Trump said he believes abortion is not a federal issue, but one that the states should regulate. Getting the federal government out of the direct and indirect abortion-funding business is consistent with his stated position. The pro-life language in the reconciliation package would be a huge step in making this happen, but some Members of Congress are worried that defunding Planned Parenthood could weaken their chances of re-election. They need to hear from you that you support life and oppose your tax dollars going to organizations that promote or perform abortions. Please see our Eagle Alert with information on how to contact your Representative.
