Every year, an estimated 21 million girls aged 15-19 get pregnant, and about 12 million give birth. However, an estimated 257 million women who want to avoid pregnancy are not using modern, safe methods of contraception. Over 60 percent of unplanned pregnancies end in abortion. All these numbers add up to why we need more Planned Parenthood services. Planned Parenthood Federation of America provides birth control, long-acting reversible contraception, emergency contraception, clinical breast examinations, cervical cancer screening, pregnancy testing and pregnancy options counseling, prenatal care, testing and treatment for sexually transmitted infections, sex education, vasectomies, LGBTQ+ services, abortion, and cancer screenings.

In 2013 Planned Parenthood Federation of America reported seeing 2.7 million patients in 4.6 million clinical visits, and roughly 16 percent of its clients are teenagers. There has been case after case concerning Planned Parenthood, where women’s rights are being fought, like Roe vs Wade, Gonzales vs Planned Parenthood, Nicole Moore vs Planned Parenthood, and other similar cases. But have we considered the increased mortality rates from 6 to 15 percent across racial and ethnic groups?

The government repeatedly attempted to defund Planned Parenthood and succeeded when the Defund Planned Parenthood Act was created. This act prohibits the organization from accessing any federal mandatory or discretionary funds. To maintain their federal funding, the organization must certify that they will not perform or support entities that perform abortions. This organization provides many more services that also help both females and males and shouldn’t be defunded for only one of its many services. Danna Bradford, an early childhood education director, and mom, said, “Planned Parenthood is gonna have to find new ways to help teens and women; because of the overturned ruling of Roe v Wade Planned Parenthood has started to struggle.”

Abortion was one of the many services that used to be provided by the Planned Parenthood Federation of America until ever since Roe v. Wade’s ruling was overturned. This ruling takes away the right of every woman to decide whether to have an abortion or not and puts that decision in the hands of the state. Many are unhappy with this ruling, but many support it too. Anti-abortionists went undercover and tried to prove planned parenthood was breaking the law, which led to some workers being fired. An anti-abortion group, the Center for Medical Progress, showed videos of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America doing illegal activities; the footage was later found to be altered.

Women face many problems simply because they are women, and the Planned Parenthood Federation of America solves many of them. Planned parenthood has helped more individuals than it has harmed. Maria Holken, a teacher and mom, understands that feeling of safety when she said, “I feel very good to know that young women have somewhere that they can receive help”. It all depends on the government because this organization is doing everything it can to help and will keep helping and fighting for women’s rights.

Ultimately, whether or not you support abortion, Planned Parenthood offers other services that help people, and the organization shouldn’t suffer because of one controversial issue. Call 1-800-230-PLAN if you ever need any help with sexual health care or visit their site at Planned Parenthood | Official Site

Sources
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Planned_Parenthood
https://www.acpjournals.org/doi/10.7326/M17-0217#:~:text=PPH%20provides%20access%20to%20quality,dramatically%20if%20PPH%20is%20defunded.
https://adflegal.blob.core.windows.net/mainsite-new/docs/default-source/documents/resources/campaign-resources/life/defund-planned-parenthood/top-10-reasons-to-defund-planned-parenthood.pdf
https://www.npr.org/2016/01/28/464594826/in-wake-of-videos-planned-parenthood-investigations-find-no-fetal-tissue-sales
https://www.scarymommy.com/7-reasons-to-protect-planned-parenthood
https://adfmedialegalfiles.blob.core.windows.net/files/PlannedParenthoodNumbers.pdf
https://go.gale.com/ps/retrieve.do?tabID=Viewpoints&resultListType=RESULT_LIST&searchResultsType=MultiTab&hitCount=39&searchType=BasicSearchForm&currentPosition=2&docId=GALE%7CEJ3010922210&docType=Viewpoint+essay&sort=Relevance&contentSegment=ZXAY-MOD1&prodId=OVIC&pageNum=1&contentSet=GALE%7CEJ3010922210&searchId=R2&userGroupName=perk75268&inPS=true
1-800-230-PLAN.