Definition & Purpose

Planned Parenthood is a provider of reproductive health care. The majority of their services are  preventive care, including preventing unintended pregnancies through contraception, reducing the spread of sexually transmitted infections through testing and treatment and screening for cervical and other cancers. They also have sex education programs, resources and tools and are leaders in the reproductive health care movement. (plannedparenthood.org)

A Brief History

In 1923, Margaret Sanger opened the Birth Control Clinical Research Bureau (BCCRB) in Manhattan to provide birth control devices to women and to collect statistics about the safety and long-term effectiveness of birth control. That same year, Sanger worked with the American Birth Control League, a new organization that examined the global impact of population growth, disarmament, and famine. The two organizations eventually merged to become the Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA).

The continued work of Sanger and efforts from other birth control proponents led to a 1936 court ruling that birth control devices and information would no longer be classified as obscene and could be legally distributed in New York, Connecticut and Vermont.

In 1948, Planned Parenthood awarded a small grant to a group of biologists to create a birth control pill. (plannedparenthood.org)

Controversy

(republicanviews.org)

Recent Developments

In 2000, the FDA approved mifepristone, otherwise known as medication abortion or the abortion pill.

In 2005, the first Planned Parenthood affiliate began providing hormone replacement therapy (HRT) for transgender patients. 

In 2006, the HPV vaccine was approved, and Planned Parenthood health centers began providing this lifesaving cancer prevention method at health centers across the country.

In 2009, The Obama administration overturned the global gag rule George W. Bush passed in an attempt to signal a commitment to sexual and reproductive health at home and abroad. “The global gag rule seriously jeopardizes the health of the world’s most vulnerable women,” PPFA Interim President Karen Pearl said. “Reproductive health care organizations overseas must either accept U.S. funds and agree to terms that jeopardize their patients’ health, or reject the funds and have to cut vital programs, which also risks their patients’ health. It is a profoundly dangerous policy that runs against our core values as Americans.”

In 2010, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) was passed. It expanded access to health insurance, allowing more people to get the health care they needed. (plannedparenthood.org)

In 2019, Planned Parenthood left the federal Title X family planning program rather than comply with new Trump administration rules regarding abortion counseling. Title X is the only federal grant program dedicated solely to providing individuals with comprehensive family planning and related preventive health services. These rules prohibit Title X grantees from providing or referring patients for abortion, except in cases of rape, incest or medical emergency. Planned Parenthood and other medical groups say the rule is unethical and interferes with the doctor-patient relationship.

(npr.org)

Public Opinion

Democrats typically support Planned Parenthood and the services it provides. Republicans tend to oppose federal funding for the organization to not appear as if the government is endorsing abortion. Abortion has been a topic of heavy polarization between Democrats and Republicans with opposition aligned with conservative beliefs. (politifact.com)