On Thursday, the Ohio Department of Health(ODH) notified Planned Parenthood locations all across the state that they would no longer be receiving funding starting next month, due to a 2016 state law that was upheld earlier this month by a federal appeals court.
The law forbids the state from providing funding to any affiliations that “perform or promote” abortions that are not considered medical necessity. Planned Parenthood offers other services such as cervical and breast cancer screening, reducing infant mortality rates, sexual assault services, sexually transmitted diseases screening/prevention, HIV/AIDS treatment, and family planning education; despite this, they will be defunded solely because they offer non-therapeutic abortions, which the law bans.
After receiving notice from ODH, Iris Harvey, Planned Parenthood of Greater Ohio CEO, said that the short notice provided by ODH will “gravely impact patients and communities across Ohio,” she added, “Ohio continues to put politics over people, putting them at greater risk. This isn’t about politics, this is about lifesaving health care.”
Although Planned Parenthood has not announced plans to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, a U.S. district court ruling agreed with Planned Parenthood that preventing funding to the organization if they continue performing abortion procedures violates Planned Parenthood’s right to due process, and “denying funding for promoting abortion violated its free speech rights.”
DeWine and Planned Parenthood have previously clashed over defamatory allegations; in 2016, Planned Parenthood reached a settlement with the state of Ohio after the healthcare provider filed a federal lawsuit seeking to prevent state Attorney General, now- governor Mike DeWine from unfairly prosecuting the organization.
Media Resources; Cleveland Metro News 3/22/19, Cleveland Metro News 3/12/19, Washington Post 3/12/19, Associated Press 3/12/19, Feminist Newswire 6/8/16
