A letter from Republican lawmakers seeking an accounting for the millions of dollars flowing to Planned Parenthood and its affiliates was sent this week to the Government Accountability Office (GAO).
Planned Parenthood’s recent annual report shows they performed over 300,000 abortions, and questions remain on whether these funds are being used for abortion in spite of federal law prohibiting it.
Sen. David Vitter leads the effort on the Senate side and he is joined by Rep. Diane Black (R-TN)) and Rep. Pete Olson (R-TX), with some 60 Republican members signing on. The last GAO report was in 2010.
It is important that Planned Parenthood’s international affiliates are included in this audit especially with the Obama administrations recent actions further prioritizing reproductive health and family planning in global development assistance.
There has been a steady increase in family planning funding since 2008 – and with the Mexico City policy being overturned, U.S. funding is flowing to many reproductive health organizations that are involved in aggressive family planning programs to lower the fertility of poor women in developing countries – International Planned Parenthood being just one of several.
The policies and initiatives established by President Obama and Hillary Clinton in the name of gender equality and women empowerment will expand reproductive health/family planning funding through a myriad of State Department agencies which will go well beyond the $620 million already being appropriated through USAID.
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This fixation on sexual and reproductive health programs diverts funding from real health care programs that combat disease and reduce maternal and child mortality.
With Hillary Clinton’s admission while heading up the State Dept., — that abortion is included in reproductive health care – a GAO audit of the organizations running RH/FP programs in these undeveloped countries is warranted, especially since the groups receiving U.S. funding advocate for population reduction and abortion.
LifeNews.com Note: Lisa Correnti writes for the Catholic Family and Human Rights Institute. This article originally appeared in the pro-life group’s Turtle Bay and Beyond blog and is used with permission.
