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(Medical-NewsWire.com, November 18, 2012 ) Victoria, Australia -- The Austin American-Statesman reports that after winning a victory in federal appeals court upholding their right to do so, state officials in Texas say they will move rapidly to remove Planned Parenthood from the Women’s Health Program. The program is a federally funded program, which furnishes low-income women with contraceptives and health care.
Funded 90% by the federal government, the Women’s Health Program promotes birth control to low-income women who would qualify for Medicaid if they became pregnant. WHP screens patients for cancer, diabetes, hypertension, sexually transmitted diseases, and other conditions. Texas and federal officials had been feuding for months over whether the state could legally bar Planned Parenthood from participating in the state’s version of the program.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services took the position that Texas had to let Planned Parenthood participate or shut down the program altogether. Planned Parenthood has been the program’s largest provider, serving nearly 48,000 of the program’s 115,000 participants annually. The Women’s Health Program since 2005 has included a prohibition against its funds being used for abortions or abortion counseling. To meet that requirement, Planned Parenthood had spun off its clinics providing those services into “affiliate” organizations.
Fighting a Texas law forbidding groups affiliated with abortion and abortion counseling services from participating in the state’s version of the Women’s Health Program, Planned Parenthood unsuccessfully went to the 5th Circuit in New Orleans The federal appeals court’s recent decision, upholding a similar decision earlier this year, allows Texas to proceed. A separate lawsuit filed by the Texas attorney general challenging the HHS position is scheduled to be heard by a federal court in Texas in March.
Following the appeals court’s ruling, Texas Governor Rick Perry said, “In Texas we choose life, and we will immediately begin defunding all abortion affiliates to honor and uphold that choice.” At the same time, the state said that on the basis of its court victory, it would drop its earlier plan to provide Women’s Health Program services through a new state program. Such a program would cost an estimated $36.3 million next year and $45.2 million in 2014.
Instead, Texas officials said they would seek continued federal funding for its program, even with Planned Parenthood excluded. The state says it plans to move ahead with the change early in November. Planned Parenthood bitterly criticized the planned state action. Kenneth Lambrecht, president of Planned Parenthood of Greater Texas, said the dispute “has never been about Planned Parenthood -- it’s about the Texas women who turn to us every day.” He added, “Politics should never come between a woman and her health care.”
About HPWH.com.au:
HPWH.com.au (http://www.hpwh.com.au) provides pregnancy-related counseling and services in Melbourne and southeast Victoria. The boutique clinic is run by a female principal surgeon and has received ISO 9001:2008 Quality Management Systems accreditation. The HPWH Centre puts great emphasis on its personalized service, calm, friendly atmosphere and patient privacy safeguards.
The Hampton Park Women's Health Care Ce
Customer Service
03 9799 2817
office@hpwh.com.au
Source: EmailWire.Com 
Source: EmailWire.com
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