The state of Ohio will cut Planned Parenthood off from receiving any money from state or federal funds or block grants under a recently upheld state law that stops public funds from going to any organization that provides abortion.
A federal appeals court ruled earlier this month that the Planned Parenthood affiliates in Ohio "do not have a due process right to perform abortions," a ruling that the six dissenting judges called "an assault on a constitutional right." Planned Parenthood has 26 clinics in the state, just a handful of them providing abortions, while all the others provide basic, essential health services to women and their families.
No public funding of any kind is used by Planned Parenthood of Greater Ohio and Planned Parenthood of Southwest Ohio Region for abortion, but the grants and contracts they do have help provide health care for the poor at little or no cost, including "testing for HIV/AIDS and other STDs, Pap smears and other cancer screenings, infant mortality prevention programs and sexual health education programs."
The short notice the state is giving Planned Parenthood will "gravely impact patients and communities across Ohio," Iris Harvey, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood of Greater Ohio, said. "These are services that other health centers simply cannot replace. Ohio continues to put politics over people, putting them at greater risk. This isn't about politics, this is about lifesaving health care."