Six Rivers Planned Parenthood Responds – February 2, 2012
SIX RIVERS PLANNED PARENTHOOD PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT
For Immediate Release
As you may have seen in the news, the Susan G. Komen for the Cure Foundation has succumbed to political pressure and changed their funding guidelines to exclude Planned Parenthood. Although Six Rivers Planned Parenthood in Eureka does not receive funding from Komen, this decision is of great concern to all of us.
Planned Parenthood health centers are a significant provider of breast cancer screenings and education across the country. Last year at Six Rivers Planned Parenthood we provided over 2,000 clinical breast exams and referred 100 patients out for screening mammograms. In addition, we are available to assist patients with enrolling in funding programs that help pay for mammograms including the Cancer Detection Program (CDP) and FamilyPACT. Education and early detection are critical to preventive health care.
Just today, we had a woman visit our health center to donate in honor of her mother, Jane McPherson Banks, who died of breast cancer thirty years ago at the age of sixty one. She was deeply disappointed that Komen, a charity she has supported for many years in memory of her mother, has made the decision to cease funding Planned Parenthood affiliates and knew her mother would be as well. She is not alone.
In these tough economic times, more women than ever need access to essential health care services like lifesaving breast cancer screenings. Many of our patients here at Six Rivers Planned Parenthood, and at Planned Parenthood affiliates across the country, utilize Planned Parenthood for essential breast and cervical cancer screenings. For many it is the only health care they get all year. One of our patients shared recently that Six Rivers Planned Parenthood “is there for me for yearly breast cancer checks, for birth control, for pap smears, for infections. Without Planned Parenthood’s sliding scale fee, I would be unable to afford these services…in fact, I am unable to afford ANY other health care, as of late. My yearly visits to Planned Parenthood are the only preventive health care services I usually receive.”
We share a common goal with the Komen Foundation – advancing women’s health – and we’re focused squarely on that goal. We would like nothing more than for the Komen Foundation to reconsider and recommit to what has been a great partnership for women who need and receive breast health services. Politics should never get in the way of women’s health care – whether it is access to birth control or breast cancer screenings. The real victims of this decision are the thousands of women who rely on these lifesaving services.
If you would like to donate to Six Rivers Planned Parenthood, visit plannedparenthood.org/srpp and click “Donate Locally Online” or call 442-2961.
