North Carolina Becomes Third State to De-Fund Planned Parenthood
North Carolina has become the third state to de-fund the Planned Parenthood abortion business now that both houses of the state legislature have agreed to override pro-abortion Gov. Bev Perdue’s budget veto.
The state legislature approved a measure to remove federal funds from the pro-abortion organization in its state budget. In North Carolina, the abortion business receives $434,000 through state family planning programs aimed at reducing teen pregnancies and providing birth control. Although the money can only be used for non-abortion services, the same organization is also the nation’s largest abortion business — doing more than 330,000 annually and comprising more than one-quarter of all abortions in the United States annually.
The provision would have North Carolina follow Indiana in declining to fund Planned Parenthood through the family planning program authorized under Medicaid. Indiana currently faces a lawsuit from Planned Parenthood and North Carolina could face one as well if the de-funding provision eventually becomes law under the state budget.
After the state House voted to override the veto, House Speaker Thom Tillis said “We think we’ve done something historic on several different levels” according to the Greensboro News-Record. Senate President Pro Tempore Phil Berger, also a Republican, told the newspaper the state Senate would follow suit today and it did just that.
Republicans hold 31 seats in the 50-seat state Senate and that proved to be more than enough for the override.
Following the vote, the Planned Parenthood abortion business criticized state legislators because the budget provision “would effectively end state and federal funding for Planned Parenthood.” http://www.lifenews.com/2011/06/15/north-carolina-becomes-third-state-to-de-fund-planned-parenthood/
Indiana Defends Planned Parenthood De-Funding in Legal Papers
A federal judge received the final legal papers today from Indiana officials defending a new state law that revokes taxpayer funding for the Planned Parenthood abortion business under Medicaid. U.S. District Judge Tanya Walton Pratt also received documents from Planned Parenthood.
Governor Mitch Daniels signed the law, which would cut off anywhere from $2 million to $3 million the Planned Parenthood abortion business receives in federal funds via the Indiana government through Medicaid. Judge Pratt initially declined to issue the injunction while she takes more time to analyze the legal issues involved in the lawsuit. That type of decision is usually an indicator that the judge will eventually issue a ruling against the party bringing the lawsuit.
The final legal papers both sides filed set the stage for a decision expected within days on whether Planned Parenthood will continue to receive funding. The abortion business says it needs the money soon or it will have to close some of its 28 centers across the state.
Indiana Solicitor General Thomas Fisher outlined the case for the state, saying Planned Parenthood does not try to segregate its funds to ensure the taxpayer money is not paying for abortions. He said President Barack Obama’s Medicaid Administrator, Donald Berwick, was wrong to send Indiana a letter threatening to cut off billions in Medicaid funding and Fisher defended the state’s right to determine the best recipients for the family planning dollars distributed through Medicaid.
Berwick’s office issued a letter to Indiana threatening to cut off Medicaid funding if it follows through with enforcement of its new law de-funding Planned Parenthood and that letter went out to 49 other states threatening to revoke their Medicaid funding if they follow Indiana’s lead.
The state also argues that it can’t be sure Planned Parenthood is not using the federal money to pay for abortions or staff or medical supplies releated to abortions because there is “no record that PPIN makes any effort to either segregate Medicaid reimbursements from other unrestricted revenue sources or to allocate the cost of its various lines of business, whether abortion, family planning, cancer screenings, or other services.” http://www.lifenews.com/2011/06/15/indiana-defends-planned-parenthood-de-funding-in-legal-papers/
Davidson health department
will take over family planning
Under prodding by the state, the Davidson County
Health Department agreed today to accept the entire
$894,000 in federal Title X funds available for family
planning services in 2011-12.
The county had accepted $535,000 in 2010-11, and
put in $547,000 in local funds, to serve a minimum of
4,400 patients. Planned Parenthood has handled the
remainder of the services under contract.
Planned Parenthood also has a contract in Shelby
County. The two contracts total about $1.1 million.
Trying to exclude Planned Parenthood because it separately
operates abortion clinics, the legislature two
years ago passed a law giving county health departments
the first opportunity to use the funds and requiring the
state health department to encourage them to do so.
The Title X family planning program is handled solely by
local health departments in 93 of the 95 counties.
Last month, lawmakers thought they passed a measure
to bar Planned Parenthood, or any other private
organization, from receiving the funds. It turned out
they didn’t. So Tennessee Right to Life and others have
urged Gov. Bill Haslam to do something.
Last Friday, the state health department sent new letters
to the Shelby and Davidson departments encouraging
them again to take “every step possible” to handle
the full program.
Unlike the letters sent last spring, these did not specify a minimum
number of “unduplicated
patients” that must be served but instead referred
simply to serving “citizens” in the two counties.
The local departments were given until today to
answer. Davidson County’s affirmative response was
conditioned on the absence of a specific patient number.
In Shelby County, which had not responded by
today’s Tennessee Journal press deadline, the problem
wasn’t solely about money. In April, the Shelby department
told the state it would consider accepting a larger
contract if the state could provide funds to “support the
full cost of operating the program,” but even then it
would need six to 12 months to “develop the infrastructure,
staff, and systems necessary to double the family
planning patient caseload.”
Planned Parenthood officials have said a loss of funding
would be a blow to its services in both counties.
How would you feel if you knew that your tax dollars paid more than 50% of the Salary for Planned Parenthood’s “Community Educator?”
The following description is currently posted on an internet job search webpage. Kayce Matthews, the contact for more information, is a Planned Parenthood employee whose salary is subsidized by your tax dollars.
Note that in addition to providing birth control information and coordinating teen outreach, the advertised position requires an ability to “plan and execute grassroots actions as political/lobbying actions.” Is this how our elected officials intend for your tax dollars to be spent under the guise of so called ‘family planning?’
EXTERNAL AFFAIRS COORDINATOR
About the Job
Planned Parenthood of Middle and East Tennessee External Affairs Coordinator Full-time with benefits. Responsible for promoting PPMET services within the community and furthering the mission of PPMET through: * Providing sexuality education and training to meet the needs of the community. * Overseeing all aspects of the FYI peer education program. * Organizing / scheduling volunteers for special events and projects. * Working with dept. to plan and execute grassroots actions as political / lobbying actions. * Assisting in planning and producing events. Requirements: Bachelor degree in Education, Counseling, or related field, or equivalent experience. Experience in teaching and/or group facilitation, ability to work with diverse populations. Good rapport with teens. Grassroots organizing and exper. with volunteers ideal. Strong self-management skills. Please send resume with cover letter by Fri., June 24 to Planned Parenthood of Middle and East Tennessee, Attn. Kayce Matthews, Education Department, 50 Vantage Way, Suite 102, Nashville, TN, 37228. EOE.
Notice that in documentation provided to pro-life state legislators by the Tennessee Department of Health, 55% of Ms. Matthews’ Community Educator salary was funded by contracts with the Tennessee Department of Health.
It’s time to end Planned Parenthood’s shell game!
End tax funding of the radical pro-abortion organization now.
Please contact Governor Haslam immediately urging him to direct his Commissioner of Health, Susan Cooper, to take every action necessary to persuade the Davidson and Shelby county health departments to accept the entire contracts for ‘birth control’ services in order to prevent tax dollars from being disbursed to Planned Parenthood affiliates in Memphis and Nashville.
Email Governor Haslam
Phone: 615.741.2001
Unprecedented Pro-Life Victories as
Tennessee’s Legislature Adjourns
SJR 127 Wins Place on 2014 Ballot,
Public Gets Vote on Radical Pro-Abortion Ruling
More than a decade after the Tennessee Supreme Court issued a wrong and radical ruling claiming a ‘fundamental’ right to abortion in the Tennessee Constitution, bi-partisan super majorities in the General Assembly have sent the matter for Tennesseans to decide in a public vote during the next governor’s election in 2014. “At long last the people of Tennessee will have their say in this matter of life and death,” said Brian Harris, president of Tennessee Right to Life. “Should a handful of activist judges make Tennessee’s laws on abortion or should it be the people acting through their elected representatives in the state Legislature? We are confident that when it’s all said and done, the power for deciding such questions will be returned to the people,” Harris said.
As required for every proposed amendment to the state Constitution, SJR 127 passed for the first time in 2009 by votes of 77-21 in the state House and 23-9 in the state Senate. Requirement for super-majority during second passage was achieved in 2011 by votes of 76-18 in the state House and 24-8 in the state Senate. Click here to view video of the Tennessee House discussion and final vote.
SJR 127 by Rep. Debra Maggart (R-Hendersonville) and Sen. Mae Beavers (R-Mount Juliet), the resolution calling for a public voters to approve inclusion of the following language in the Tennessee Constitution:
Nothing in this Constitution secures or protects a right to abortion or requires the funding of an abortion. The people retain the right through their elected state representatives and state senators to enact, amend, or repeal statutes regarding abortion, including, but not limited to, circumstances of pregnancy resulting from rape or incest or when necessary to save the life of the mother.
As written the proposed amendment does not criminalize abortion but overturns the Court’s pro-abortion ruling, returns the Tennessee Constitution to a position of neutrality on abortion and allows the people of the state and their elected legislators to again enact meaningful protections for women and unborn children in our state.
While the Court’s 2000 ruling in Planned Parenthood v. Sundquist makes it impossible to enforceprotections that violate the state’s newly discovered ‘right to abortion,’ Tennessee Right to Life has encouraged passage of policies which do not directly challenge the Court’s holding. Several such pro-life protections were passed by overwhelming bi-partisan majorities in the final days of the legislative session including:
State Budget Amendment to Bar Funding for Planned Parenthood by Senators Stacey Campfield (R-Knoxville), Rusty Crowe (R-Johnson City), Randy McNally (R-Oak Ridge), and Lt. Gov. Ramsey (R-Blountville.) Further tightens 2009 effort by requiring that federal Title X family planning funds shall be used fully by local, county or municipal health departments and that no funds shall be disbursed to private non-profit organizations or agencies. Diverts $1.2 million tax dollars from Planned Parenthood affiliates in Nashville and Memphis. Passed unanimously as part of final budget approval.
Expansion of Tennessee’s Unborn Victims of Violence Act by Rep. Joshua Evans (R-Springfield) and Sen. Mae Beavers (R-Mt. Juliet.) Extends current state law to include unborn children prior to viability as victims of assault or homicide. Previous statute was only enforceable following establishment of child’s viability. Passed House 80-0 and Senate 26-0.
Ban on Webcam Abortions in Tennessee by Rep. Matthew Hill (R-Jonesborough) and Sen. Rusty Crowe (R-Johnson City.) Brought in response to Planned Parenthood’s aggressive plan for inducing RU 486 abortions through Internet connections without a physician present. In Iowa trials more than 2,000 such abortions have already been performed with plans for expanding the practice in “underserved” and rural areas throughout the country. Passed House 86-6 and Senate 29-1.
House Resolution Honoring the Work of Life Affirming Pregnancy Resource Centers by Rep. Jim Gotto (R-Hermitage) Passed unanimously and without debate by the full House 95-0.
Tennessee Right to Life expresses deep appreciation to the courageous prime sponsors of each bill and to each member who cast their votes in support of restoring some measure of protection for Tennessee’s unborn children and abortion-vulnerable mothers. In addition, we are especially grateful to House Speaker Beth Harwell who allowed full consideration and fair treatment and Lieutenant Governor Ron Ramsey whose sincere and deep commitment to protecting life is evidenced by the priority given these proposals. The organization is also grateful for pro-life committee chairs such as Mae Beavers, Rusty Crowe, Randy McNally, Bo Watson, Glen Casada, Bill Dunn, and Charles Sargent who made it possible for the last week of historic pro-life victories to become reality.
Most importantly, Tennessee Right to Life thanks its members, donors, chapter leaders and Board members who have continued to sacrifice from a shared concern that the voices of the weak and innocent be heard in the hallways and hearing rooms of the Tennessee General Assembly. It is because of you that the cause of life continues to move forward in such a dramatic way despite the enormous challenges our state’s movement faces. Tennessee Right to Life remains more confident than ever that, as this session proves, our best days are still to come.
FRANKLIN, Tenn. — Bill Haslam and Mike McWherter differed Monday on whether they would support spending state money on family-planning services to low-income people, especially if it involves contraception and contracting with Planned Parenthood.
Both candidates for governor said they oppose spending state dollars on abortion.
But McWherter, a Democrat said he could support Tennessee participating in a federal Medicaid program in which federal dollars pay up to 90 percent of the costs of nonabortion family-planning services for low-income people, even if it includes contraception and contracting with Planned Parenthood to deliver the services.
Haslam, a Republican, said he’s opposed to spending state dollars on contraception and routing any state funds through Planned Parenthood. He said he’d have to learn more about what other states do that participate in the federal program.
The candidates were making their last joint appearance before the Nov. 2 election, sharing a stage for nearly an hour for a question-and-answer session at the Tennessee Economic Council on Women meeting in Franklin.
The moderator asked the men whether they would support Tennessee participating in the family-planning component of the Medicaid program to leverage state tax dollars and improve access to health care for low-income women. Republicans in the state legislature last year worked to block all state funding for Planned Parenthood, which contracts with the state Department of Health for limited, nonabortion family planning.
“I guess the big question is what is meant by family planning,” Haslam responded. “If it’s having Planned Parenthood run it out of state dollars, I would not be in favor of that. I would not be in favor of state dollars going to abortion, either. Are there other things that we can do to help on this very serious issue in Tennessee? You bet. But again I’d have to know what the other states are doing on that; what are they spending those dollars on.”
(TRL NOTE: THE ANSWER IS TO ALLOCATE FUNDING TO LOCAL COUNTY HEALTH DEPARTMENTS WHERE MANY LOW INCOME WOMEN ARE ALREADY RECEIVING ADDITIONAL SERVICES FOR THEMSELVES AND THEIR FAMILIES.)
In his response to the council, McWherter said, “I would never use state dollars to fund an abortion, but I do think where you’ve got Planned Parenthood programs that help families to plan — especially for an unwanted pregnancy — that we absolutely should participate in those programs. We should leverage those dollars so that we don’t get into a situation where a mother is faced with making that very hard decision.”
Elaborating on the issue with reporters, the Democratic candidate said he disagrees with Haslam on part of the issue. “Where programs are available to help avoid an unwanted pregnancy, I would certainly want to participate in any programs like that.”
McWherter plans to campaign at several events in Memphis today.
Contact Nashville Bureau chief Richard Locker at (615) 255-4923.
© 2010 Memphis Commercial Appeal. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
