This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
In a stroke of brilliance, House Republicans have proposed a bill that will likely increase our teen birthrate, reverse our decreasing abortion rate as well as boost the number of infants born with birth defects as a result of Zika exposure in utero, all while costing taxpayers more money.
One may ask, what remarkable plan could possibly achieve all of these things? The House Appropriations Committee proposes to do all of the above by eliminating access to family-planning services by cutting funding to the Title X program.
Title X is a program that was conceived in 1970 under then-President Nixon. The idea that this program should support a woman's access to family-planning services, regardless of her economic status, received bipartisan support at the time. Since then, however, this idea has received much less bipartisan support in the pro-life versus pro-choice firestorm that has consumed the media. Not surprisingly, the Republican agenda prioritizes political gain above access to basic care for 4.1 million women, men and young people.
Despite objections from women's health experts and the acceleration of the Zika virus, House Republicans released a budget proposal in June that would eliminate funding for the Title X family planning program. The Republican Senate budget proposal would cut Title X funds by $28.7 million, significantly limiting the program's ability to continue to promote health and prevent disease. From 2010 to 2015, Title X endured $31 million in budget cuts, resulting in nearly 700,000 patients losing access to care because of staff layoffs and health-center closures.
This national issue strikes close to home in Utah, too. According to the Guttmacher Institute, more than 34,000 Utah women received care at a Title X-supported health center (including 5,260 teens) in 2013. Regardless of whether you've personally received care at a Title X clinic, you've still reaped the benefits as a taxpayer: In 2010, care provided at Title X centers saved our state over $46 million.
The Centers for Disease Control has declared that access to effective birth control is crucial in preventing fallout from the Zika virus. As of Aug. 3, there have been six locally acquired Zika infections in Florida, and the CDC estimates that 41 states are at risk for inhabitation of the Aedes mosquito that transmits Zika. We know that Zika is also sexually transmitted and that it can cause birth defects if an infant is exposed in utero. With 45 percent of pregnancies in the United States being unplanned, it is clear that we have not seen the last of Zika, quite possibly in most of our states. You don't have to be a woman, Democrat or health-care provider to see that Title X saves lives and money, and will continue to do so as the Zika predicament escalates.
As a labor and delivery nurse and student midwife, I witness the importance of having access to family planning and maternity services every single day. The well-being of our women and children is imperative to the health of our families, our communities and, ultimately, our nation. Republicans would rather shut down Planned Parenthood than protect women and unborn children from an actual public health crisis. It is clear that our lawmakers do not understand, or do not care about, the potential implications of this proposal for Americans.
So, what can you do if you care about women, children or simply your tax dollars? Write to Reps. Chris Stewart, Mia Love, Rob Bishop and Jason Chaffetz and demand that they do the right thing — vote to fund critical programs. Keep the health of women at the forefront of their women's health agendas.
Samantha Lawson, RN, SNM, is a labor and delivery nurse studying to be a women's health nurse practitioner and nurse midwife in Salt Lake City.