We caught sight Monday of another example of why 1984 sped to the top of the Amazon best-seller list after Nov. 8. It’s one of those Republican bills with a Doublespeak name: “Protect Funding for Women’s Health Care Act.” The bill does the opposite. It was introduced by Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst and has 23 co-sponsors, all Republican.
Not only would it bar providing any federal money to the Planned Parenthood Federation of America or any of its affiliates, it would also overturn President Obama’s administrative rule barring states from defunding the women’s health care organization. No funding now appropriated for health services like prenatal and post-natal care and breast and cervical cancer screenings would be cut, but the bill would redirect this money to health care providers that do not also perform abortions.
The bill attracted more than 20 protesters Monday to the federal building in downtown Des Moines, a sign of more opposition to come when the bill comes up for consideration. Among their placards was one reading: “I stand with Planned Parenthood and so do 74 percent of Iowans.” Jason Noble and Tony Leys report:
The protesters contended that by cutting access to birth control services, the bill would lead to more unintentional pregnancies and more abortions. Several protesters said they didn’t participate in activism much in the past, but they are determined to do so in the face of drastic measures being pushed through by Trump and his allies.
“We can’t be silent anymore. Things have changed,” said Karen Lauer, 53, of Des Moines. “I’m not going to be one of those people who sits back and says, ‘Oh well, everything will turn out OK.’ I’m afraid it won’t.”
Under the Hyde Amendment, federal money—most of it through Medicaid—cannot be spent for abortions except in cases where a pregnancy was caused by rape or incest, or when it endangers a woman’s life. So not a nickel of tax money goes to Planned Parenthood for abortions now. But for years, the forced-birther movement has said that prohibition isn’t good enough because the organization just substitutes other money—from grants and donations—to cover abortions.
While the bill’s sponsors claim that other health providers will be able fill the needs of women who now go to Planned Parenthood, that’s not how many experts see it. Hannah Levintova writes:
An analysis conducted by the Guttmacher Institute, which publishes research on reproductive health, found that in two-thirds of the counties that have a Planned Parenthood center, these centers serve at least half of the women seeking publicly funded contraceptive care. In one-fifth of those counties, Planned Parenthood is the only provider offering subsidized contraceptive care.
"If passed, these bills will cause a national health care crisis, leaving millions with nowhere to go for basic care," said Dana Singiser, vice president of public policy and government affairs for the Planned Parenthood Federation of America, in a statement.
A bill similar to Ernst’s was passed by Congress last year, but President Obama vetoed it. If the current version gets a congressional thumbs-up, which seems inevitable, it will no doubt get Pr*sident Trump’s signature.