The Quickie: Patient Advocates to Congress: Don't Attack Our Care

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: Patients advocate for sexual and reproductive rights on the Hill, GOP presidential debate delivered…nothing.

WITH LOOMING GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN, PATIENT ADVOCATES DESCEND ON CAPITOL HILL: “STOP USING BUDGET NEGOTIATIONS TO ATTACK REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH CARE: Yesterday, Planned Parenthood patient advocates from across the country met with House and Senate members and their staff to talk about the importance of access to sexual and reproductive health care. Many of the patients discussed services they received at Planned Parenthood affiliate health centers. 

We can’t forget, no matter how much they try to deflect and distract, that House Republicans packed must-pass government funding bills with an anti-health agenda. This exhaustive list includes efforts to “defund” Planned Parenthood, eliminate funding for the Title X family planning program and the Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program, and overturn protections for servicemembers and their families to access abortion in certain circumstances at the VA. 

“Elected officials need to hear the voices and stories of the millions of patients who receive essential health care services at Planned Parenthood affiliate health care centers,” said Jacqueline Ayers, senior vice president of policy, organizing, and campaigns at Planned Parenthood Action Fund. “Right now, certain politicians are attacking access to sexual and reproductive health care–and are willing to shut down the government to further their extreme agenda. This is unacceptable and these politicians will hear from us. We’re thankful to have champions and allies in Congress who will continue to fight to protect access to sexual and reproductive health care in any government funding agreement.” 

LAST NIGHT’S DEBACLE: Last night, some of the GOP presidential contenders took to the debate stage to lay their vision out for America — but none of them delivered. In between the bickering, interrupting, and awkward exchanges, they continued to push their dangerous and unpopular anti-agenda. As predicted, their lies and disinformation about abortion were on full display. They also attacked access to gender-affirming health care, and doubled down on their cruel plan to control our bodies and personal health care decisions. If you missed it, it was more of the same, tired, losing playbook from the GOP hopefuls. Have they learned nothing from recent election results?