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Articles

10 reasons taxpayers should defund Planned Parenthood

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January 9, 2017

On Thursday, House Speaker Paul Ryan announced that as part of the process to repeal the Affordable Care Act, Republican congressional leaders would include a provision that would prevent Planned Parenthood from receiving any federal funding.

Here are ten reasons why every taxpayer should support congressional efforts to defund Planned Parenthood:

1. Planned Parenthood is the largest provider of abortions in America—and the largest recipient of federal funding for family planning.

Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA) has 57 affiliates that operation approximately 650 “health centers.” PPFA require that at least one clinic per affiliate must perform abortions. The result is that PPFA is America’s largest abortion provider, performing more than 323,000 abortions a year.

PPFA is also the largest single recipient of federal funding for family planning. A report produced by the by the U.S. Government Accountability Office in 2015 found that over a three year period (2010-2012), PPFA received $344.5 million in direct federal funds and an additional $1.2 billion in funding from Medicaid (which includes a combination of federal and state funds). Altogether, Planned Parenthood gets nearly a half a billion dollars every year from the American taxpayer.

2. Planned Parenthood covers up the crimes of rapists, pimps, and sex traffickers

Planned Parenthood has repeatedly and consistently turned a blind eye to reports of statutory rape. Some of their clinics have also demonstrated a willingness to partner with pimps and sex traffickers to exploit young women instead of safeguarding their health and safety.

In 2015, Planned Parenthood even encouraged Congressional Democrats to oppose a domestic anti-trafficking bill because it would prohibit money in a restitution fund from being spent on abortions.

3. Planned Parenthood’s corporate profits come at the taxpayer’s expense

Based on Planned Parenthood’s latest annual report, taxpayer dollars accounted for at least 40 percent of all the corporation’s revenue—and 100 percent of the corporation’s profits. As Americans United for Life notes, that is profit after paying all expenses, including not only its employees’ salaries and benefits (such as the half a million dollars compensation to the corporation’s president) but also over half a billion dollars for categories it describes in its reports as “public policy,” “building advocacy capacity,” “increase access,” “renew leadership,” “refresh our brand,” and “engage communities. Without this taxpayer funding it is unlikely that Planned Parenthood would be able to earn a profit or to fund their advocacy for abortion.

4. Planned Parenthood opposes abstinence-only education and promotes sexual deviancy

Planned Parenthood strongly opposes sex education that focuses on abstinence and has gone so far as to file lawsuits against school districts that have decided to implement abstinence-only programs. The organization claims to offer “value-neutral” sex education. (As an example, on their website aimed at teenagers, they included an article that teaches kids that, “Some straight couples use anal sex as a way to preserve the woman's virginity.”)

5. Planned Parenthood systematically engages in fraudulent ‘overbilling’ to maximize revenue from government-funded programs

Investigations of Planned Parenthood financial data and practices conducted in 12 states found hundreds of thousands of abortion related claims were billed unlawfully to Medicaid. Auditors and investigators have specifically identified Planned Parenthood affiliates as the source of at least $12.8 million in waste, abuse, and potentially fraudulent overbilling and penalties. The audits also found numerous improper practices resulting in significant federal funding overpayments of more than $8.5 million, and overbilling of state family planning programs amounted to more than $123.8 million.

6. While taxpayer funding for Planned Parenthood doubled, the number of cancer screenings they provided dropped by half

One of the justifications Planned Parenthood uses to acquire federal funding is the claim that they provide necessary medical services, such as cancer screening. But taxpayer funding of the abortion provider has doubled since 2005 while the number of cancer screening has been cut by 50 percent (and the number of abortions provided increased by more than 12 percent).

7. Planned Parenthood may have violated federal law in selling fetal tissue for monetary gain

A recent Congressional investigation uncovered documents and received testimony from confidential informants indicating that four Planned Parenthood clinics may have violated federal law forbidding the transfer of fetal tissue for “valuable consideration.” Congress has referred the matter to the U.S. Department of Justice for further investigation.

8. Planned Parenthood altered abortion techniques to increase success of harvesting fetal tissue from abortions

The recent Congressional investigation uncovered that Planned Parenthood would change abortion techniques to maximize recovery of intact fetal parts (i.e., body parts from unborn babies). When congressional investigators questioned a Los Angeles Planned Parenthood abortion provider, she admitted she would change abortion procedures as to increase the likelihood of a successful procurement of specific fetal tissue for resale.

9. Planned Parenthood violated patient confidentiality to facilitate sale of fetal tissue from aborted babies

Some Planned Parenthood affiliates seem to be more concerned with making a sale on body parts than they are with securing their patient’s privacy.

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) established the Privacy Rule, which protects all individually identifiable health information by setting limits and conditions on the uses and disclosures that may be made of such information without patient authorization. A recent Congressional investigation found that several Planned Parenthood clinics violated this rule by disclosed patients’ individually identifiable health information in an effort to resale human fetal tissue obtained from abortions to a biomedical supply company.

10. Planned Parenthood supports infanticide through advocacy of partial-birth abortion

For more than two decades, Planned Parenthood has consistently supported partial-birth abortion and opposed any efforts to ban this infanticidal practice.

In this gruesome procedure, the abortionist pulls a living baby out of the womb feet-first and into the birth canal, except for the head, which the abortionist purposely keeps lodged just inside the cervix. The abortionist then punctures the base of the baby’s skull with a surgical instrument.

In 2013, a Planned Parenthood of Florida lobbyist, testifying against Florida's Born Alive Infants Protection Act, told lawmakers that if a baby survives an abortion, it is debatable whether that baby should live or die. And while in the Illinois state senate, Barack Obama worked with Planned Parenthood to determine how he should vote on partial-birth abortion legislation. (With Planned Parenthood's blessing, he voted “present” to protect his “100 percent” record on pro-abortion votes.)

If you are not ok with your tax dollars funding abortions, help us defund Planned Parenthood by signing a petition for Congress. Sign your name here

Joe Carter

Joe Carter is the author of The Life and Faith Field Guide for Parents, the editor of the NIV Lifehacks Bible, and the co-author of How to Argue Like Jesus: Learning Persuasion from History’s Greatest Communicator. He also serves as an executive pastor at the McLean Bible Church Arlington location in Arlington, Virginia. Read More

Article 12: The Future of AI

We affirm that AI will continue to be developed in ways that we cannot currently imagine or understand, including AI that will far surpass many human abilities. God alone has the power to create life, and no future advancements in AI will usurp Him as the Creator of life. The church has a unique role in proclaiming human dignity for all and calling for the humane use of AI in all aspects of society.

We deny that AI will make us more or less human, or that AI will ever obtain a coequal level of worth, dignity, or value to image-bearers. Future advancements in AI will not ultimately fulfill our longings for a perfect world. While we are not able to comprehend or know the future, we do not fear what is to come because we know that God is omniscient and that nothing we create will be able to thwart His redemptive plan for creation or to supplant humanity as His image-bearers.

Genesis 1; Isaiah 42:8; Romans 1:20-21; 5:2; Ephesians 1:4-6; 2 Timothy 1:7-9; Revelation 5:9-10

Article 11: Public Policy

We affirm that the fundamental purposes of government are to protect human beings from harm, punish those who do evil, uphold civil liberties, and to commend those who do good. The public has a role in shaping and crafting policies concerning the use of AI in society, and these decisions should not be left to those who develop these technologies or to governments to set norms.

We deny that AI should be used by governments, corporations, or any entity to infringe upon God-given human rights. AI, even in a highly advanced state, should never be delegated the governing authority that has been granted by an all-sovereign God to human beings alone. 

Romans 13:1-7; Acts 10:35; 1 Peter 2:13-14

Article 10: War

We affirm that the use of AI in warfare should be governed by love of neighbor and the principles of just war. The use of AI may mitigate the loss of human life, provide greater protection of non-combatants, and inform better policymaking. Any lethal action conducted or substantially enabled by AI must employ 5 human oversight or review. All defense-related AI applications, such as underlying data and decision-making processes, must be subject to continual review by legitimate authorities. When these systems are deployed, human agents bear full moral responsibility for any actions taken by the system.

We deny that human agency or moral culpability in war can be delegated to AI. No nation or group has the right to use AI to carry out genocide, terrorism, torture, or other war crimes.

Genesis 4:10; Isaiah 1:16-17; Psalm 37:28; Matthew 5:44; 22:37-39; Romans 13:4

Article 9: Security

We affirm that AI has legitimate applications in policing, intelligence, surveillance, investigation, and other uses supporting the government’s responsibility to respect human rights, to protect and preserve human life, and to pursue justice in a flourishing society.

We deny that AI should be employed for safety and security applications in ways that seek to dehumanize, depersonalize, or harm our fellow human beings. We condemn the use of AI to suppress free expression or other basic human rights granted by God to all human beings.

Romans 13:1-7; 1 Peter 2:13-14

Article 8: Data & Privacy

We affirm that privacy and personal property are intertwined individual rights and choices that should not be violated by governments, corporations, nation-states, and other groups, even in the pursuit of the common good. While God knows all things, it is neither wise nor obligatory to have every detail of one’s life open to society.

We deny the manipulative and coercive uses of data and AI in ways that are inconsistent with the love of God and love of neighbor. Data collection practices should conform to ethical guidelines that uphold the dignity of all people. We further deny that consent, even informed consent, although requisite, is the only necessary ethical standard for the collection, manipulation, or exploitation of personal data—individually or in the aggregate. AI should not be employed in ways that distort truth through the use of generative applications. Data should not be mishandled, misused, or abused for sinful purposes to reinforce bias, strengthen the powerful, or demean the weak.

Exodus 20:15, Psalm 147:5; Isaiah 40:13-14; Matthew 10:16 Galatians 6:2; Hebrews 4:12-13; 1 John 1:7 

Article 7: Work

We affirm that work is part of God’s plan for human beings participating in the cultivation and stewardship of creation. The divine pattern is one of labor and rest in healthy proportion to each other. Our view of work should not be confined to commercial activity; it must also include the many ways that human beings serve each other through their efforts. AI can be used in ways that aid our work or allow us to make fuller use of our gifts. The church has a Spirit-empowered responsibility to help care for those who lose jobs and to encourage individuals, communities, employers, and governments to find ways to invest in the development of human beings and continue making vocational contributions to our lives together.

We deny that human worth and dignity is reducible to an individual’s economic contributions to society alone. Humanity should not use AI and other technological innovations as a reason to move toward lives of pure leisure even if greater social wealth creates such possibilities.

Genesis 1:27; 2:5; 2:15; Isaiah 65:21-24; Romans 12:6-8; Ephesians 4:11-16

Article 6: Sexuality

We affirm the goodness of God’s design for human sexuality which prescribes the sexual union to be an exclusive relationship between a man and a woman in the lifelong covenant of marriage.

We deny that the pursuit of sexual pleasure is a justification for the development or use of AI, and we condemn the objectification of humans that results from employing AI for sexual purposes. AI should not intrude upon or substitute for the biblical expression of sexuality between a husband and wife according to God’s design for human marriage.

Genesis 1:26-29; 2:18-25; Matthew 5:27-30; 1 Thess 4:3-4

Article 5: Bias

We affirm that, as a tool created by humans, AI will be inherently subject to bias and that these biases must be accounted for, minimized, or removed through continual human oversight and discretion. AI should be designed and used in such ways that treat all human beings as having equal worth and dignity. AI should be utilized as a tool to identify and eliminate bias inherent in human decision-making.

We deny that AI should be designed or used in ways that violate the fundamental principle of human dignity for all people. Neither should AI be used in ways that reinforce or further any ideology or agenda, seeking to subjugate human autonomy under the power of the state.

Micah 6:8; John 13:34; Galatians 3:28-29; 5:13-14; Philippians 2:3-4; Romans 12:10

Article 4: Medicine

We affirm that AI-related advances in medical technologies are expressions of God’s common grace through and for people created in His image and that these advances will increase our capacity to provide enhanced medical diagnostics and therapeutic interventions as we seek to care for all people. These advances should be guided by basic principles of medical ethics, including beneficence, non-maleficence, autonomy, and justice, which are all consistent with the biblical principle of loving our neighbor.

We deny that death and disease—effects of the Fall—can ultimately be eradicated apart from Jesus Christ. Utilitarian applications regarding healthcare distribution should not override the dignity of human life. Fur- 3 thermore, we reject the materialist and consequentialist worldview that understands medical applications of AI as a means of improving, changing, or completing human beings.

Matthew 5:45; John 11:25-26; 1 Corinthians 15:55-57; Galatians 6:2; Philippians 2:4

Article 3: Relationship of AI & Humanity

We affirm the use of AI to inform and aid human reasoning and moral decision-making because it is a tool that excels at processing data and making determinations, which often mimics or exceeds human ability. While AI excels in data-based computation, technology is incapable of possessing the capacity for moral agency or responsibility.

We deny that humans can or should cede our moral accountability or responsibilities to any form of AI that will ever be created. Only humanity will be judged by God on the basis of our actions and that of the tools we create. While technology can be created with a moral use in view, it is not a moral agent. Humans alone bear the responsibility for moral decision making.

Romans 2:6-8; Galatians 5:19-21; 2 Peter 1:5-8; 1 John 2:1

Article 2: AI as Technology

We affirm that the development of AI is a demonstration of the unique creative abilities of human beings. When AI is employed in accordance with God’s moral will, it is an example of man’s obedience to the divine command to steward creation and to honor Him. We believe in innovation for the glory of God, the sake of human flourishing, and the love of neighbor. While we acknowledge the reality of the Fall and its consequences on human nature and human innovation, technology can be used in society to uphold human dignity. As a part of our God-given creative nature, human beings should develop and harness technology in ways that lead to greater flourishing and the alleviation of human suffering.

We deny that the use of AI is morally neutral. It is not worthy of man’s hope, worship, or love. Since the Lord Jesus alone can atone for sin and reconcile humanity to its Creator, technology such as AI cannot fulfill humanity’s ultimate needs. We further deny the goodness and benefit of any application of AI that devalues or degrades the dignity and worth of another human being. 

Genesis 2:25; Exodus 20:3; 31:1-11; Proverbs 16:4; Matthew 22:37-40; Romans 3:23

Article 1: Image of God

We affirm that God created each human being in His image with intrinsic and equal worth, dignity, and moral agency, distinct from all creation, and that humanity’s creativity is intended to reflect God’s creative pattern.

We deny that any part of creation, including any form of technology, should ever be used to usurp or subvert the dominion and stewardship which has been entrusted solely to humanity by God; nor should technology be assigned a level of human identity, worth, dignity, or moral agency.

Genesis 1:26-28; 5:1-2; Isaiah 43:6-7; Jeremiah 1:5; John 13:34; Colossians 1:16; 3:10; Ephesians 4:24