When the Senate passed a bill to defund Planned Parenthood on Dec. 3, much of the reasoning stemmed from politicians’ objections to the organization’s abortion services. But government money rarely goes to those procedures. In fact, it’s designated for services like cancer screens that saved nearly 88,000 lives between the fall of 2012 and 2013.
The American Cancer Society estimates that about 44,390 women will die from breast and cervical cancers this year. But Planned Parenthood detected cancers early and identified abnormalities in nearly double that amount of women through breast exams and Pap tests, according to the organization’s 2013-2014 annual report.
Additionally, the reproductive health services organization saw 2.7 million patients last year, and provided nearly 500,000 breast exams and nearly 400,000 Pap tests, according to Karen Shea, the director of medical standards at Planned Parenthood Federation of America. Defunding the non-profit at the federal level would thereby endanger the lives of 900,000 women.
Cancer screens and prevention made up 9 percent of the services offered by Planned Parenthood between 2012 and 2013, according to the annual report. Contraception accounted for 34 percent of services, and STI/STD testing and treatment made up 42 percent of services. Only 3 percent of services performed were abortions.
However, the Senate voted 52-47 to defund Planned Parenthood’s $528 million in government money, 40 percent of the organization’s total $1.3 billion in revenue. That funding can only go to abortions in restricted cases, and robs the other life-saving services Planned Parenthood performs.
Seventy-five percent of the federal funding comes from Medicaid, the rest from Title X, a program aimed at lower-income patients. Title X does not allow federal funds to be used for abortions, while Medicaid only permits federal spending on abortions in cases of incest, rape or if the mother’s life is at risk.
The Senate’s vote runs contrary to popular opinion in America, according to a new poll from USA Today/Suffolk University. Fifty-eight percent of Americans polled between Dec. 2 and Dec. 6 believe federal funding for Planned Parenthood should not be eliminated. Thirty-three percent thought it should and nine percent were undecided.
“There is a universal recommendation in the United States that all women should be screened for cervix and breast cancer (through mammography),” said Dr. Richard Wender, the chief cancer control officer at the American Cancer Society. “That alone is a very powerful statement about the proven benefits of screenings for both of these cancers.”
Breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in women, according to the American Cancer Society. However, death rates have been declining since the late 1980s because of earlier detection through screening, increased awareness and improved treatment.
Between 1955 and 1992, cervical cancer incidences and death rates dropped by more than 60 percent. That’s because the Pap test was created in 1950 and its use was increased, the American Cancer Society reported. This screen can find changes in the cervix that could be precancerous cells or detect cancer early, in its most curable stage, according to the American Cancer Society.
Wender said that cervical cancer is the leading cause of death in countries where Pap tests are not available. He said hundreds of thousands of women die every year from the disease. Malawi, Mozambique and Comoros had the highest incidences of cervical cancer in 2012, according to the World Cancer Research Fund International.
“Not having those services available would lead to additional deaths from breast and cervix cancer that would have been prevented through screening,” Wender said.