Scott County, Indiana, the center of an exploding HIV outbreak, has been without an HIV testing center since early 2013, when the sole provider -- a Planned Parenthood clinic -- was forced to close its doors. The clinic did not offer abortion services.
The Scott County clinic and four other Planned Parenthood facilities in the state, all of which provided HIV testing and information, have shuttered since 2011, in large part due to funding cuts to the state's public health infrastructure. Those cuts came amid a national and local political campaign to demonize the health care provider. Now, the state is scrambling to erect pop-up clinics to combat an unprecedented HIV epidemic caused by intravenous drug use.
The fact that Scott County was "without a testing facility until a few weeks ago is a glaring example of the kind of public health crisis that results when prevention and testing are left unfunded," said Patti Stauffer, Planned Parenthood of Indiana and Kentucky's vice president for public policy.
Apparently Indiana launched one of the first Republican led assaults against Planned Parenthood, all in the name of fighting against abortion, resulting in the closing of five clinics.
None of which offered abortion services.
I think that's what they call cutting off your nose to spite your face.
Of course rational people realize that offering access to abortions is only a very small part of the services provided by Planned Parenthood which also include contraception, cancer screenings, and of course screenings and treatments for sexually transmitted diseases.
You know, like HIV.
Gee Indiana is really going out of its way to be impressive this week, don't you think?
When I was in college, my friends and I would go to planned parenthood for annual pelvic and breast exams as well as any gyno problems we might have in between. They were affordable (and had sliding scale payment) and you never had to wait too long for an appointment. We also got our birth control there. For many of us, it was the only option because some didn't have health insurance.
ReplyDeleteI remember how many college students I would see there, not to mention many other women from all minority and ethnic groups. There was a reason why PP has sliding scale payment.
What a shame these trogs can't understand that planned parenthood provides routine and preventive care as well as actually helps PREVENT unwanted pregnancies (and not just via birth control). It also, by the way, provide prenatal care. And it provides all these services to women who may have no other options because of financial or other circumstances.
And aside from all these other services PP provides, abortion is legal and should be available to every woman, not just those who can pay for it out of their own pockets or those who can afford to travel to get one.
I had a friend who had an unwanted pregnancy in college. She went to PP where she got unbiased counseling on all her options. She chose to terminate her pregnancy via abortion. She made that decision early on in her pregnancy thanks to how accessible and respectful Planned Parenthood was to her.
I also used PP when I was in college for screenings, as did many of my friends. I can't believe how many RW leaning co-workers who only believed the rhetoric that PP provides abortions, had no idea about all the helpful services PP provides.
DeleteR in NC
PP needs to change its name to reflect the more comprehensive services it truly provides and take the focus off the contraception part.
ReplyDeleteWhy? Why does the word contraceptive scare you?
DeleteMeh, there are too many humans on this planet and we are stressing our resources. A few less actually does us a favor.
ReplyDeleteWe keep electing these shortsighted zealots. Are we really ever going to learn?
ReplyDeleteMany intelligent folks on both sides .wake up people!!!!!
Sometimes even the lefties go "bad":
ReplyDeletehttp://gawker.com/sen-bob-menendez-indicted-after-years-long-corruption-1695101487
Why should they care about women's health, they hate women.
ReplyDeleteIt's a good thing that Indiana is such a small state that you can drive straight through it without even a toilet break- and who'd want to meet any of the people that voted for those creeps anyway?
The GOP is always complaining about government overreach in businesses, what's more important? Hobby crap from a christian store or the health and lives of women and families?
ReplyDeleteThe right to lifer's are putting up billboards with little infants in easter clothes saying "I heard my mom's voice before I was born" Now they can read "I heard my mom's voice before I was born but will never see her because I'm blind from the birth canal because MOM had an STD or I'll never see her because she died from HIV.
We women need to take back our rights, and the women and men who love us should support us in this. It's not a "Get a shot of penecillin and you'll be fine" world anymore.
Cancer screenings save lives, pap smears and a plethora of procedures other than abortion save lives. Why do these rwnj's love to see women suffer and die?
Religious zeal -- it's the Christian thing to do in their twisted minds. No different than fanatic Muslim thinking.
DeleteA very joyless life it must be for them all.
I have never understood how news reports were allowed to use "abortion clinic" instead of "women's health center" or some such when referring to Planned Parenthood. As tho abortion was the only service offered and PP was pulling women off the street and coercing them to have an abortion to meet a quota, like Mickey D's "1 million sold" signs used to announce.
ReplyDeleteThat has always been my concern. Found out it was a subtle ploy started by the right-to-lifers that took hold. The news outlets need to stop.
DeleteDon't worry, I volunteered enough yrs at PP to know the protesters came in at the end of the day or through the back door to schedule abortion services. But no harm , no foul, "Grandma" that scheduled the abortion for the "daughter" was always willing to to protest after her daughters "unfortunate incident" was taken care of.
DeleteAnon 5:49 THAT story needs to be told and re-told and re-told loudly. Those hypocrites need to be exposed for what they are. Not that the "true believers" will ever believe the truth, but still, others around them need to hear it.
DeleteRAinNC
Indiana Pizza Place
ReplyDeleteForced to Close Doors
After Refusing to Cater Gay Wedding
Read more: http://www.tmz.com/2015/04/01/memories-pizza-closes-indiana-deny-service-gay-wedding/#ixzz3W6tkVjQp
And looky here. Somebody hacked their web page LOL!
http://www.memoriespizza.com/
Won't that be "The will of the people"? Sorry no empathy for any business turning down customers ( especially in a town of 2,000"
DeleteAnd if they went under that quickly, they were ready to nose dive anyway, but thought this religious crap would keep them afloat for awhile.
Sorry, but the law isn't even enacted yet. They were apparently looking for a way to not take responsibility for the failed pizza hut they purchased and now is a failing generic pizza issue. By tomorrow they will be suckering stupid people on "GofundMe" to pay for their failed business adventure.
DeleteAnon at 7:49...you called it..as of now, they have collected over $48,000 from 2600+ rubes across the country. More than they made in a year, I feel sure. PT Barnum was right "there's a sucker born every minute".
DeleteI guess it's safer than torching the place for the insurance. You can go to jail for that, unlike torching human rights.
Delete@anon 3:41am
DeleteThanks for letting me know just how quick they got it up there to grift.
Gov. Pence is reaping the foolishness he allowed to be sowed with the Planned Parenthood opposition. Guy just keeps looking dumber and dumber.
ReplyDeleteThe nearest I will ever come to Indiana is 30,000 ft.
ReplyDeleteAltitude.
Ever!
Yup, it's clearly never going to advance over a "fly over state".
DeleteAnd the state had such a great tune and syncopation going for it fromThe Music Man's "Gary, Indiana."
DeleteSung by little Ron Howard --
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xjP2O9Qe4Ek
56 seconds