Progressives and other supporters of women’s health have been disappointed and angered by the politically-motivated decision by the Susan G. Komen Foundation to cut off funding to Planned Parenthood for breast cancer screening, prevention, and screening services. In many poor and rural communities, Planned Parenthood is the only option for women to obtain these lifesaving services.
(If you want to support the Breast Health Emergency Fund established by Planned Parenthood in response to these events, here is a secure donation link.)
In a glimmer of good news, it was widely reported yesterday (originating, I think at the Huffington Post), that the Connecticut chapter of Susan G. Komen had broken with the national decision and would continue to fund Planned Parenthood. The Boston Globe appeared to follow suit. Perhaps other affiliates would follow this courageous move, women’s health supporters thought.
Only one problem with the courageous move. It didn’t happen. Follow me after the jump to see how many good people were fooled.
The most important thing is to understand what actually happened to Planned Parenthood’s funding. In PP’s own words:
In the last few weeks, the Komen Foundation has begun notifying local Planned Parenthood programs that their breast cancer initiatives will not be eligible for new grants (beyond existing agreements or plans).
That’s easy enough to follow, right? No new grant applications will be accepted as long as Planned Parenthood remains “under investigation.” (As most people now know, the “investigation” is nothing more than a demand for documents made by a single Republican legislator.) Existing grants will continue until they run out, but no new applications will be accepted as long as the investigation remains open. That’s the new policy that Komen just now happened to coincidentally adopt.
Now, let’s look at what the “courageous” Connecticut affiliate actually announced, as posted on its Facebook page and reported by the Huffington Post.
The decision regarding the funding of Planned Parenthood was made by Susan G. Komen for the Cure National Headquarters. Susan G. Komen for the Cure Connecticut enjoys a great partnership with Planned Parenthood, and is currently funding Planned Parenthood of Southern New England. We understand, and share, in the frustration around this situation. We hope that any investigation prohibiting Planned Parenthood from receiving Komen grants is promptly resolved.
Quite simply, this is not an expression of defiance of the national Susan G. Komen organization. Connecticut says it is currently funding Planned Parenthood – but the national organization never said current funding would be cut off. It just said no new grant applications would be accepted. When the current grant runs out this June, there will be no more funding. Unless you attach great significance to Connecticut’s statement that it “shares in the frustration” (in my experience, corporate PR-speak which means “gosh, we really wish we could help, but we won’t”), there is no news here. In fact, they acknowledge that the so-called investigation “prohibits Planned Parenthood from receiving Komen grants.”
Unfortunately, many people have been tricked by the doublespeak. Just take a look at some of the comments from the Facebook page for the Connecticut affiliate:
Thank you for continuing to support Planned Parenthood in its mission to provide healthcare to women!
Thank you for standing up.
The only affiliate who was gone against National headquarters and has pledged to continue to support Planned Parenthood of Connecticut and work with the organization to save lives!
But as we have seen, the CT affiliate is not actually doing anything differently. There will be no new funding for Planned Parenthood, which is precisely what the new national policy says. Let’s remember, even the national Susan G. Komen organization claims to think the world of Planned Parenthood and claims that it wishes it could continue funding PP if it weren’t for that goshdarned new policy:
“While it is regrettable when changes in priorities and policies affect any of our grantees, such as a long-standing partner like Planned Parenthood, we must continue to evolve to best meet the needs of the women we serve and most fully advance our mission,” the statement said.
To be clear, I do not question the heart of the CT affiliate and its officers. For all I know, they understand the critical role PP plays in women’s health and they completely disagree with the national decision. Perhaps they truly wish they could continue issuing new grants to PP. But I do question their honesty when they lead people to believe they will defy the national decision and continue funding Planned Parenthood. Shame on them for the doublespeak. We can only guess at how many donations have been made to the Connecticut affiliate in the past 24 hours to support them for a courageous action they didn’t actually take.
Unless and until there is evidence that Connecticut or any other affiliate will defy the national policy and continue issuing new grants to Planned Parenthood, even against the will of the national organization – and I have no idea whether this is even theoretically possible – all the carefully-crafted expressions of “frustration” will make no difference in the bottom line.
Again, here is the secure donation link to support Planned Parenthood. If you want to make a positive difference in women’s health, they need your support now more than ever.
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