Know your facts on family planning services in stimulus bill

[bcoylepa]

Folks - in the mid 80's I was hired by Planned Parenthood through a federal grant to offer family planning education in upstate NY for people who were unemployed - it was a very valuable service for families that were struggling to stay afloat - the classes were filled by people who had never thought about it before and never knew that they had a choice in this area

fast forward to today - Public support is very high for family planning services - we can win this pr campaign if people have the facts

the conversation on this board about the stimulus bills family planning and contraceptive piece tells me - most people here do not understand how this fits in and how much it is needed

the fact is that no one would be forcing states to pay for family planning services.
we may loose this one at this point but that doesn't lessen the need for it
Dems have to be smarter in how they talk about it



From Think Progress
http://thinkprogress.org/2009/01/26/contraceptives-stimulus/
"As usual, in addition to throwing out insults, conservatives are distorting and simplifying the facts. Here is the actual text from the stimulus package’s summary:

State Option to Cover Family Planning Services. Under current law, the Secretary has the authority under section 1115 of the Social Security Act to grant waivers to states to allow them to cover family planning services and supplies to low-income women who are not otherwise eligible for Medicaid. The bill would give states the option to provide such coverage without obtaining a waiver. States could continue to use the existing waiver authority if they preferred.

Like other portions of the stimulus bill, this measure would not only aid states, but also provide preventative, cost-saving health care to help low-income women support their families and keep working. It focuses on access to recommended services and contraception to prevent unplanned pregnancies and promote maternal and infant health — not abortion. ThinkProgress has learned that an upcoming Congressional Budget Office report estimates that this change would save $200 million over five years and $700 million over 10."

[demo dutch]

1. Sorry respectfully disagree, this isn't the time to insert it, make it part of a healthcare proposal

[SunsetDreams]

2. agreed nt

[riqster]

5. That way, we can push the Reeps to the wall on this issue alone

...take away their cover.

[Born_A_Truman]

7. I agree--it should be part of health care package

[Clio the Leo]

3. Thank you......

..... and I would imagine this money would help create jobs (as you'll need staffers to provide these services.)

Anything that promotes employment AND helps fight against unwanted pregnancy is fine by me.

I am a "right to lifer," but I fully realize abortion is not going away, legal or otherwise. It's a shame that the GOP and the value voters get so caught up in a hot button issue that they prevent efforts to actually help women NOT to get pregnant before they're ready.

Stupid rightwingers.

[geek tragedy]

4. Too late--the Republicans demanded we take it out

and Obama took it out so they'd stop going on Fox News and saying bad things about the stimulus bill.

Oh, wait . . .

[Blue_Roses]

6. grow up...

:eyes:

[Occam Bandage]

9. Or, you know, he took it out because it has nothing to do with stimulus.

Sometimes it isn't about picking and winning a fight; it's about ensuring that the best possible bill is passed.

[firedupdem]

11. That sounds really silly. President Obama doesn't give a flying

fuck about fox news. :eyes:

[Occam Bandage]

8. I don't deny that it is a worthwhile use of Federal funds. I do, however, deny

that it has a significant short-term stimulative effect. This proposal should be included in a health-care spending bill, not in an economic stimulus package. I think that keeping bills focused increases transparency and improves the quality of government.

[AlinPA]

10. It should be in a health-care bill, not this stimulus.