Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2010

DEPARTMENTS OF LABOR, HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, AND EDUCATION, AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2010 -- (House of Representatives - July 24, 2009)

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Ms. TSONGAS. Mr. Chair, I stand in opposition to the Pence amendment, which would prevent thousands of low-income women from receiving critical women's health services.

At a time when Congress is trying make sure every American has access to affordable, critical health care services, this amendment goes against our attempts to reform a broken health care system.

Planned Parenthood is one of the nation's leading women's health care providers.

In my home state of Massachusetts, Planned Parenthood serves more than 36,000 patients, most of them in need of basic health care.

This includes nearly 5,000 pap tests and breast exams.

They provide affordable contraception, STD testing and treatment, anemia testing, cholesterol and thyroid screening.

With 47 million Americans uninsured, we need clinics like Planned Parenthood. Low-income women are currently four times more likely to face an unintended pregnancy.

We should do everything we can to try to reduce the number of unintended pregnancies in America through common-sense measures.

None of the funds in this bill can be used for abortions, and clinics that receive them have to show that federal funds are not used for the procedure.

In fact, 97 percent of the health care that Planned Parenthood provides is primary and preventive.

If this amendment were to pass, millions of women all across the country would have nowhere else to turn for quality, preventive health care.

I urge a ``no'' vote on this amendment.

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