The gift certificates are available for purchase in values from $25 to $100 and can be used for all services the organization provides, whether 'tis the season for pap smears, contraception or routine medical visits and procedures (yes, including abortions).
Planned Parenthood of Indiana's president and CEO, Betty Cockrum, said the offering is out of concern that women will forego basic medical needs during stressed economic times. She added that women in particular are likely to gas up the car or put food on the table than tend to their own healthcare.
Although Cockrum said she would be "amazed if a dime of it goes toward an abortion," the program is, not surprisingly, under fire. The director of one anti-abortion organization called the gift certificates "lethal," asserting that the campaign contradicts the meaning of Christmas, which is "about the celebration of human life."
Planned Parenthood chapters in Illinois, New York, Alaska, and Michigan are also considering offering gift certificates.
There have been some years I've been delighted to get holiday gift cards to my supermarket, Target, and favorite restaurants. Knowing that I was beginning the year with assurance I could stock up on all the things I needed felt like a sigh of relief. I am privileged not to have to bank on presents to pay for groceries anymore but as a woman vigilent about health matters, I think it would be great to know all my co-pays were taken care of for the year.
What about you? What if you could get the gift of birth control or an annual exam in your stocking this season? Is a Planned Parenthood present an offensive or delightful present to get?
via: ParentDish
