A group of anti-abortion protestors greeted Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) as she arrived at a meeting with business leaders in Watertown on Monday. The protestors asked Gillibrand to address the efforts in the Senate to defund Planned Parenthood.
The Republican-led senate voted on a bill Monday to stop federally funding the organization in response to undercover videos that appear to show executives of the organization discussing the sale of fetal tissue for medical research. The bill was blocked.
Gillibrand says the plan to defund Planned Parenthood is misdirected because in most cases the organization does not use federal funds for abortions.
“Planned Parenthood’s budget is not spent on abortions. Three percent of their budget is for family planning services. It is such a small minority and it is only used in cases of incest and rape and death of the mother,” Gillibrand said.
Gillibrand says without Planned Parenthood, many low-income woman would not have access to annual cancer screenings and contraception.
“What they typically do is they do the mammogram, they do the cervical cancer screenings, and they’ll give healthcare to people who can’t afford it. It’s their healthcare provider. I support it. I think it’s very important to support healthcare for people who can’t afford it,” Gillibrand said.
Gillibrand accepted a packet of information from the pro-life group on their views against abortion.
