The Quickie: Abortion Is An Economic Issue

Welcome to “The Quickie” — Planned Parenthood Action Fund’s daily tipsheet on the top health care & reproductive rights stories of the day. You can read “The Quickie'' online here.

In today’s Quickie: Low-income people suffer the biggest financial burdens from abortion bans, PP resumes abortion care statewide in AZ, taxpayer money used to spread anti-abortion and reproductive health misinformation, Alexis McGill Johnson at MAKERS, and PP is in with the youth!

ABORTION IS AN ECONOMIC ISSUE: Yesterday, AP reported on the financial burdens created by abortion bans. According to the Guttmacher Institute, three-quarters of people who seek abortions are low-income, and more than half already have children. For people who cannot get abortion care, carrying an unwanted pregnancy quadruples the odds that the family will live below the poverty line and triples the chance the pregnant person will end up unemployed, according to the Turnaway Study. Those who are denied an abortion are also more likely to have increased rates of debt, evictions, and bankruptcies, according to the National Bureau of Economic Research. This is all compounded by the reality that the states in the country with the strictest abortion bans are also the hardest places for people with lower incomes to raise children.

Read more at AZ Family and ABC 15.

“THE CRISIS PREGNANCY CENTER NEXT DOOR”: TAXPAYER MONEY USED TO SPREAD ANTI-ABORTION AND REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH MISINFORMATION: This week, CNN published a report highlighting the growing presence of crisis pregnancy centers (CPCs) and states’ increased investment of taxpayer dollars into the centers after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. CPCs use false advertising to target pregnant people and deter them from seeking abortion care. Notably, they often do not provide health care services but receive millions in state funding across the country to spread health misinformation, such as advocating for the non-proven claim that a medication abortion can be “reversed”. One study found that 86% of CPCs in North Carolina promoted false or misleading medical information.

“They’ve provided an array of misinformation, whether it’s about abortion care or even about contraceptive services,” Lillian Williams, Vice President of Health Services of Planned Parenthood Greater Ohio, told CNN.

At least 18 states fund CPCs with taxpayer money, according to CNN. Meanwhile, many states, like Ohio, have ceased funding for Planned Parenthood clinics for essential sexual and reproductive health care services. CPCs are also often set up right next to abortion providing clinics, like Planned Parenthood clinics; more than 100 CPCs are within 200 meters of an abortion clinic around the country.There are only 790 abortion clinics as of 2021 but over 2500 crisis pregnancy centers.

Read more at CNN.

THE CAVALRY IS YOU: On Tuesday, Planned Parenthood President and CEO Alexis McGill Johnson spoke at the 2022 MAKERS Conference about the fight for reproductive freedom, after joining a panel discussion with The Janes directors Tia Lessin and Emma Pildes, social change organizer Heather Booth, and reproductive justice advocate Loretta Ross on the fight for abortion rights before Roe v. Wade. In her speech, Alexis encouraged the audience of business leaders and culture shapers to continue the decades-long fight for reproductive freedom and use their platforms for change.

“The cavalry isn’t coming. Cavalry is you. You are a Maker – you are here in this room because you have had an opportunity to make your own future. It’s because you have the luxury of choosing hope. That luxury is a responsibility; it’s a calling; it’s a demand of you. So stand in your power. Use it.”

In an interview with Forbes following her speech, Alexis shared her vision for the future, highlighting the need for an unapologetic and fearless fight for reproductive rights:

“We've seen incredibly bold stances around the shootings two years ago and the response to Black Lives Matter; we've seen it around democracy and voting reforms; we've seen it around LGBT issues. Why not this issue?”

“Here's the thing. It's going to be a long game. There are no shortcuts here. The opposition spent the last 50 years suppressing votes, taking over courts, shaming patients and threatening providers. So we're going to spend our next 50 years working across all 50 states to organize, to litigate, to expand care through technology and networks and get ourselves back into the Constitution.”

PP 🤝 GEN Z: PLANNED PARENTHOOD FEATURED AS TOP 3 BRAND FOR GEN Z CONSUMERS: Planned Parenthood was featured by AdAge as one of the top 20 brands gaining popularity with Gen Z this year. The article touched on the success of the Bans Off Our Bodies webpage, which launched in April and had 3.8 million views within the first two months. VP of Brand and Culture Strategy Lauren Garcimonde-Fisher provided insight into Planned Parenthood Federation of America’s efforts to engage with young audiences following the overturning of Roe v. Wade, including advertising on college campuses and expanding on TikTok. She also highlighted the full-page New York Times ad in support of reproductive rights that was published earlier this year and featured celebrities including Megan Thee Stallion and Ariana Grande. PPFA was ranked third on the list of brands gaining the most attention for consumers between the ages of 18 and 24.

The Quickie: Abortion Is An Economic Issue

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