With the recent passing of the Big Beautiful Bill, Congress was able to deliver a major victory for moms and babies across the country — the end of forced taxpayer funding of Big Abortion.
Soon after we learned of the decision to defund, Planned Parenthood announced over 25 clinic closures across the country. Abortion activists, joined by a complicit media, have decried the decision, claiming these closures present a clear and present threat to women’s health.
The perceived threat is based on a decades-long branding strategy to frame abortion as part of women’s healthcare. Millions of Americans (and much of Congress) have been persuaded that “abortion is healthcare” and that Planned Parenthood uniquely provides services that benefit women’s health. Planned Parenthood’s own annual reports prove that myth to be false.
According to a Charlotte Lozier Institute report earlier this year, “In 2022-23, 96.9% of the time, women seeking help related to their pregnancy at Planned Parenthood were sold an abortion rather than given prenatal care, provided care for a miscarriage, or helped to make an adoption plan.” Since 2013, total services have fallen by 10%, cancer screenings and prevention services by 54%, and prenatal services by 63%. Actual health services are decreasing while Planned Parenthood’s cash-generating abortion business admits in their 2023–24 annual report that its “excess of total revenue over total expenses is $27.4 million.”
Despite what the media is reporting, women have no reason to fear for their health in the wake of the Planned Parenthood closures. Abundant resources remain to help women navigate pregnancy — planned or unplanned — with abundant care and compassion.
As the executive director of Women’s Choice Network in Pittsburgh, Pa., I have seen firsthand how pregnancy resource centers (PRCs) support and empower women to confidently choose life while holistically protecting their reproductive health — an essential act of service at which Planned Parenthood repeatedly fails. Planned Parenthood’s track record shows little evidence of caring about the actual needs of the women who walk through its doors.
Research reveals that six out of 10 abortion-seeking women would prefer to carry their pregnancies to term if they had adequate emotional and financial support. Pregnancy Resource Centers meet those needs with compassionate, holistic care. More than half of PRCs are led by physicians and staffed with credential providers, allowing women access to ultrasound, testing, STD treatment, and assessment at no cost. If Planned Parenthood and other abortion providers truly cared about women’s health, they could easily identify those concerns and connect mothers to the local life-affirming support they seek.
Instead, 96% of women who are served in Planned Parenthood clinics are only offered abortions rather than true medical care. I’ve witnessed the pain and regret women face after abortion decisions. Post-abortion grief is real and deeply damaging. Each year, Planned Parenthood performs more than 400,000 abortions nationwide, amounting to ten times the number of people Times Square holds. In fact, their efforts to destroy innocent life in the womb make abortion the leading cause of death in America.
Our clients in Pittsburgh freely tell us about the horrors of their abortion experiences and the unintended impact that follows. Even The New York Times reported on substandard facilities, failed abortions, improperly placed birth control devices, and dangerously inadequate training among staff. Women deserve better. Defunding and eventual closures of Planned Parenthood clinics will spare thousands of women and men the traumatizing experience of abortion.
For decades, women have turned to their local PRCs for comprehensive support. The generosity, warmth and professionalism of PRCs stand in stark contrast to the dehumanizing “one choice” abortion industry. Like Women’s Choice Network, more than 2,750 PRCs provide women not only essential medical care, but counseling, parenting classes, post-birth care and physical resources including diapers, baby clothing and formula, to empower them for pregnancy and parenting. Just in 2022 alone, PRCs met with clients over 16 million times and provided services to nearly 975,000 new clients.
“Olivia” was one of those clients. After suffering a previous abortion, she found herself pregnant once again. Thinking that once again abortion was her only choice, she called Planned Parenthood. But a friend told her to cancel that appointment and visit us for an ultrasound first. Olivia had mixed emotions at the sight of her tiny baby on the screen. As our staff assessed her needs, she told her friend, “I think I can do this. I think I can be a mother.” Olivia immediately joined a post abortion care group and later delivered a beautiful little boy who is growing and thriving and is the joy of her life.
Women in every state deserve nothing less than the very best pregnancy support available at every stage of life without having to put their lives and the lives of their children at risk. With every Planned Parenthood closure, mothers are granted even more freedom to seek care at pregnancy centers dedicated to walking with them through their lives’ most precious moments, free from fear and worry and full of hope.
Amy Schuring, Executive Director of Women’s Choice Network in Pittsburgh, PA.
