Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) Friday welcomed the announcement by officials of Susan G. Komen for the Cure that they intend to reverse the group's controversial decision to stop supporting cancer screenings at Planned Parenthood clinics.
Leahy, long a leader in the Senate in advancing breast cancer research and prevention, said, "A bad decision threatened to stand in the way of lifesaving cancer screenings for thousands of women. I am glad that the foundation heard and felt the groundswell of appeals from Vermont and across the nation on behalf of women's health and common sense."
In some areas of the country Planned Parenthood clinics are the only option for women to have annual exams and breast cancer screenings. Planned Parenthood's 10 clinics in Vermont accomplished about 4500 breast cancer screenings last year.
Leahy on Thursday was one of 26 U.S. senators who called for the foundation to reverse its decision, in a letter the senators sent to Nancy Brinker, the Komen organization's founder and CEO. On Friday, the group's leaders changed course and announced that the foundation would continue to fund breast cancer screenings by Planned Parenthood.