Judge says Arizona's abortion ban can take effect

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Hundreds protest toughening Spain's abortion law

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Spain angers feminists with plan to tighten abortion law

"Women with slogans written on their bodies reading "Yes to life, but I choose" and "Priests and judges out of my body" take part in a protest against a reform of the country's abortion law recently proposed by the Spanish conservative government, at Tirso de Molina Square in Madrid. (AFP Photo/Dani Pozo)" title

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Medicaid official rules against Ind. abortion law

Indiana's decision to deny Planned Parenthood Medicaid funds because it performs abortions denies women the freedom to choose their health care providers, a federal hearing officer said.

The state had asked the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services in Chicago to reconsider its June 2011 ruling that found changes in Indiana's Medicaid plan unacceptable. But a hearing officer recommended in documents released Friday that a CMS administrator uphold the agency's initial decision.

The changes to Indiana's plan resulted from a 2011 law that would have made the state the first to deny the organization Medicaid funds for general health services, including cancer screenings. The law has been on hold while the dispute works its way through the courts.

The Indiana attorney general's office, which already is appealing a federal judge's order blocking the law, said it may also contest the panel's recommendation. The state had argued that the dispute should be decided administratively by the CMS, not in court.

"Because this is a recommendation, the Attorney General's Office has a chance to file an exception to it before the CMS administrator makes a final decision," the agency said in a statement.

Planned Parenthood of Indiana said it was gratified by the decision.

"Through its appeal, the State was continuing its attack on women's rights and attempting to restrict access to basic, lifesaving services such as Pap tests, breast exams, STD testing and treatment, and birth control," Betty Cockrum, chief executive officer of Planned Parenthood of Indiana, said in a statement.

While Planned Parenthood officials had feared they might have to close some of the organization's 28 clinics in Indiana or suspend some services because of a loss of Medicaid funds, that has not happened so far. Cockrum has said about 9,300 women rely on Planned Parenthood for their health care.

Indiana had argued that Medicaid funds intended to help groups like Planned Parenthood provide general health care would indirectly subsidize abortions. The Hyde Amendment, a 1976 provision named after the late Rep. Henry Hyde, R-Ill., bans all federal funds for abortion except in cases of rape, incest or when the life of the mother is at risk.

The state also said Planned Parenthood could continue to receive Medicaid funding if it established separate fiscal entities for abortion and other health care. But CMS said such an option was premature.

Hearing officer Benjamin Cohen wrote that the Indiana law violated the federal requirement that individuals must have the freedom to obtain care from any qualified provider. Restricting that choice just because a care provider also offers non-covered care isn't allowed, he wrote.

Indiana asked the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago last August to lift U.S. District Judge Tanya Walton Pratt's June 24, 2011, preliminary injunction blocking parts of the abortion law. The court has not yet ruled.

Another federal appeals court ruled in May that Texas cannot ban Planned Parenthood from receiving state funds, at least until a lower court has a chance to hear formal arguments. A three-judge panel of the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals agreed with a lower court that there's sufficient evidence the state's law preventing Planned Parenthood from participating in the Women's Health Program is unconstitutional.

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U.S. women in 20s less likely to get pregnant or have abortion

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Arizona bans funding to Planned Parenthood in abortion fight

Reuters – Sat, May 5, 2012 PHOENIX (Reuters) - Arizona Governor Jan Brewer on Friday signed into law a bill banning abortion providers like Planned Parenthood from receiving money through the state, her office said in a statement.

The Republican-backed Whole Woman's Health Funding Priority Act cuts off funding for family planning and health services delivered by Planned Parenthood clinics and other organizations offering abortions.

"By signing this measure into law I stand with the majority of Americans who oppose the use of taxpayer funds for abortion," Brewer said in a statement.

Arizona joins six other states with similar laws, officials said. But three of those states -- Indiana, Kansas and North Carolina -- are facing legal challenges.

Arizona does not provide tax dollars for abortion, but backers said the law is needed to make sure that no indirect monies are funneled to organizations like Planned Parenthood that provide abortion and other health services. There were no estimates of how much money is involved.

But officials at Planned Parenthood Arizona, the state's largest abortion provider, said the law means that thousands of women in the state may now go without life-saving cancer screenings, birth control and basic health care.

"We are most concerned about the women and men who could be forced to go without health care as a result of this bill," Bryan Howard, Planned Parenthood Arizona's president and CEO, said in a prepared statement.

"We remain committed to providing Arizona communities with the professional, nonjudgmental and confidential health care they have relied on for 78 years," Howard said.

The anti-abortion group Susan B. Anthony List called the bill a "major victory" in its fight to bar funding of abortion providers.

"Abortion-centered businesses like Planned Parenthood do not need or deserve taxpayer dollars," Marilyn Musgrave, vice president of government affairs for the organization, said in a written statement.

While Planned Parenthood suffered a setback in Arizona, it won a temporary battle in court on Friday with Texas. A federal appeals court ruled that the organization could participate in a health program for low-income women in Texas, despite a new state rule there that bans affiliates of abortion providers.

(Editing by Tim Gaynor, Dan Whitcomb, Greg McCune and Lisa Shumaker)

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Mississippi bill may force state's only abortion clinic to close

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Utah governor signs law mandating 72-hour wait for abortion

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US breast cancer fundraising lags after abortion dispute

Reuters – Fri, Mar 23, 2012 WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. breast cancer charity Susan G. Komen for the Cure is feeling a pinch on donations following a controversy over its funding for Planned Parenthood, a leading provider of birth-control and abortion services.

A few of the group's flagship "Race for the Cure" fundraising events have failed to meet targets, a Komen spokeswoman said on Friday. Separately, at least five of the group's leaders have stepped down in recent weeks.

Komen, the world's biggest breast cancer charity, provoked uproar over its decision to cut - and later restore - funding for Planned Parenthood, a leading provider of birth control, abortion and other women's health services. Komen supports Planned Parenthood's efforts to provide access to breast-cancer screening.

The initial move to cut Planned Parenthood's funding became public in late January, and was viewed by some Komen supporters as a capitulation to political pressure from anti-abortion groups. Within a few days, the charity reversed course.

Komen said it had had problems meeting targets in about half of the five fundraising events it has staged since the blowup.

One in Lafayette, Louisiana, raised less than $400,000, below its $500,000 goal, and another, to be held in Fort Worth, Texas, is also struggling.

Komen spokeswoman Leslie Aun said the lower numbers appeared to stem from the controversy over Planned Parenthood.

"We're seeing challenges for races in some of our markets," Aun said. "People are concerned and they've decided not to help Komen. That's unfortunate because it affects women whose lives we're trying to help save."

FIVE MORE OFFICIALS STEP DOWN

Komen has said that in 2011 it screened 700,000 uninsured women for breast cancer, and it spends 83 cents of every donation dollar on research or community services.

Five Komen executives or directors have recently announced they are leaving the organization, although a group insider cited personal reasons for most of the resignations.

Nancy Macgregor, who has been with Komen since 1990, is leaving her role as vice president of global networks in June. Joanna Newcomb, director of affiliate strategy and planning, and Katrina McGhee, executive vice president and chief marketing officer, are also stepping down.

Aun said the chairman of Komen's board, LaSalle Leffall would resign his position to focus on a new role as provost at Howard University, though he will remain on the board. His replacement will be Robert Taylor, a Dallas attorney who had retired as Komen's founding board member in 2010.

Of the group's local leadership, Chris McDonald, head of the Komen affiliate in Oregon and Southwest Washington, announced on February 25 that she would resign. She said the controversy over Planned Parenthood affected her decision, but it was not the primary cause, according to a statement on the group's website.

Dara Richardson-Heron, the head of Komen's affiliate for greater New York City, announced on the group's website she was stepping down as "a personal decision."

The recent exodus follows the resignation of Karen Handel, a senior executive charged with spearheading the decision to cut funding for Planned Parenthood.

Some of Komen's members have also called for the resignation of founder Nancy Brinker, who created the organization in honor of her sister, who died from breast cancer.

Komen's board said it had "complete confidence" in the group's leadership.

"This isn't about Komen. This is about women," Aun said about the charity's work. "If people understand what's at stake, they'll come back and be supportive."

(Editing by Michele Gershberg and David Brunnstrom)

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Breast cancer fundraising lags after abortion dispute

Reuters – Sat, Mar 24, 2012 WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. breast cancer charity Susan G. Komen for the Cure is feeling a pinch on donations following a controversy over its funding for Planned Parenthood, a leading provider of birth-control and abortion services.

A few of the group's flagship "Race for the Cure" fundraising events have failed to meet targets, a Komen spokeswoman said on Friday. Separately, at least five of the group's leaders have stepped down in recent weeks.

Komen, the world's biggest breast cancer charity, provoked uproar over its decision to cut - and later restore - funding for Planned Parenthood, a leading provider of birth control, abortion and other women's health services. Komen supports Planned Parenthood's efforts to provide access to breast-cancer screening.

The initial move to cut Planned Parenthood's funding became public in late January, and was viewed by some Komen supporters as a capitulation to political pressure from anti-abortion groups. Within a few days, the charity reversed course.

Komen said it had had problems meeting targets in about half of the five fundraising events it has staged since the blowup.

One in Lafayette, Louisiana, raised less than $400,000, below its $500,000 goal, and another, to be held in Fort Worth, Texas, is also struggling.

Komen spokeswoman Leslie Aun said the lower numbers appeared to stem from the controversy over Planned Parenthood.

"We're seeing challenges for races in some of our markets," Aun said. "People are concerned and they've decided not to help Komen. That's unfortunate because it affects women whose lives we're trying to help save."

FIVE MORE OFFICIALS STEP DOWN

Komen has said that in 2011 it screened 700,000 uninsured women for breast cancer, and it spends 83 cents of every donation dollar on research or community services.

Five Komen executives or directors have recently announced they are leaving the organization, although a group insider cited personal reasons for most of the resignations.

Nancy Macgregor, who has been with Komen since 1990, is leaving her role as vice president of global networks in June. Joanna Newcomb, director of affiliate strategy and planning, and Katrina McGhee, executive vice president and chief marketing officer, are also stepping down.

Aun said the chairman of Komen's board, LaSalle Leffall would resign his position to focus on a new role as provost at Howard University, though he will remain on the board. His replacement will be Robert Taylor, a Dallas attorney who had retired as Komen's founding board member in 2010.

Of the group's local leadership, Chris McDonald, head of the Komen affiliate in Oregon and Southwest Washington, announced on February 25 that she would resign. She said the controversy over Planned Parenthood affected her decision, but it was not the primary cause, according to a statement on the group's website.

Dara Richardson-Heron, the head of Komen's affiliate for greater New York City, announced on the group's website she was stepping down as "a personal decision."

The recent exodus follows the resignation of Karen Handel, a senior executive charged with spearheading the decision to cut funding for Planned Parenthood.

Some of Komen's members have also called for the resignation of founder Nancy Brinker, who created the organization in honor of her sister, who died from breast cancer.

Komen's board said it had "complete confidence" in the group's leadership.

"This isn't about Komen. This is about women," Aun said about the charity's work. "If people understand what's at stake, they'll come back and be supportive."

(Editing by Michele Gershberg and David Brunnstrom)

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