July 11, 2018

What is up with this big push to defund Planned Parenthood? It can't possibly be about the budget because it makes zero economic sense.

The current estimated cost of raising a child in the United States from birth to age 17 (not even into adulthood) is $222,360. [1] The cost of birth control (there are at least 20 different options) ranges from $0 to $600 per year. [2] Seventeen years of birth control, even at the most expensive price, costs only $10,200. So how does defunding Planned Parenthood save us money?

The average cost of a first trimester abortion at a clinic is about $430, but can range from $350-$900 in the absence of health insurance coverage for the procedure, and will cost more if performed in a hospital. [3] Oh, but federal laws prohibit government funding of abortion, so the cost to taxpayers is $0. So how does defunding Planned Parenthood save us money?

In addition, a recent study by the New England Journal of Medicine found that childbirth is actually more traumatic to a woman than a first trimester abortion. This study found that the number of women seeking psychiatric treatment nearly doubled after the birth of their first child, while there was no increase in psychiatric care for women who had a first-trimester abortion. [4] So how does defunding Planned Parenthood save us money?

Furthermore, we all pay the price when an unwanted child comes into the world and is horribly neglected or abused or murdered. I'm not just talking about the economic costs of:

dual legal proceedings - in criminal court and in children's court

incarceration of the parent(s)

parenting, counseling, anger management, and other court-mandated services ordered by DCFS

medical and psychiatric treatment for the surviving child or children

foster care for all surviving children

the costs of raising all surviving children until age 18

future crimes against society and incarcerations perpetrated by the unwanted child who fails to get adequate support and services during childhood and perpetuates the multi-generational cycle of abuse, neglect, poverty, addiction, etc.

the costs of repeating all of the above with each successive generation

So how does defunding Planned Parenthood save us money?

From a purely economic standpoint, cuts in federal funding to Planned Parenthood make absolutely zero sense. I don't buy it, especially when you look at the pittance of our overall budget this amount represents. "According to a statement released by NARAL on Tuesday, 'a 2008 Guttmacher Institute study demonstrates that every $1 spent on birth control through the Medicaid program saves taxpayers $4.02.' So, how fiscally responsible is this, really? Doesn't appear to be about saving money." [5]

I'm also talking about the deep psychic and spiritual wound we all suffer, whether we are conscious of it or not, when child abuse and neglect are occurring within our own society.

I am talking about the anger, the finger-pointing, the resentment, the fear, and the refusal to provide economic assistance to the poor, neglected, unwanted, abused women and children of our country.

IF POLITICIANS REALLY WANTS TO SAVE MONEY, LET THEM MAKE IT EASIER FOR PEOPLE TO PLAN THEIR OWN FAMILIES. Educate them to make smart, responsible choices, but don't make their choices for them.

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[1] http://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2010/06/18/The-cost-of-raising-a-child-222360/UPI-39221276914536/ AND http://money.msn.com/family-money/raising-your-222000-baby.aspx

[2] http://money.usnews.com/money/blogs/alpha-consumer/2010/08/27/the-real-cost-of-birth-control- AND http://www.plannedparenthood.org/health-topics/birth-control-4211.htm

[3] http://www.kaycircle.com/What-is-the-average-cost-of-an-Abortion-withouth-Health-Insurance-in-2010-Average-Price-Range-of-an-Abortion AND http://www.plannedparenthood.org/health-topics/abortion/in-clinic-abortion-procedures-4359.asp

[4] http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa0905882 AND http://www.lovelyish.com/740270765/abortion-is-less-traumatic-for-women-than-childbirth-study-says/

[5] http://www.alternet.org/newsandviews/article/512057/wisc._planned_parenthood_defunded_in_walker%27s_budget/

For the top 10 most outrageous anti-choice laws, see: http://motherjones.com/mojo/2011/03/abortion-GOP-top-10