Statement by Reina Schiffrin, President/CEO, Planned Parenthood Hudson Peconic, on President Obama’s Jobs Proposal

(Hawthorne, NY) - Planned Parenthood health centers are seeing firsthand the costs of today’s economic challenges.

Many of our patients are seeking out Planned Parenthood for affordable, essential health services because they simply have nowhere else to turn after being laid off, losing insurance, or failing to find jobs with benefits.
“Women are coming in for critical preventive services, such as breast exams, birth control and Pap tests that cannot be put off, even if they don’t have insurance.
“As a trusted provider who has seen one in five American women at some point in her life, we know that creating middle-class jobs will help increase access to health care.
“President Obama’s plan would mean that more women and families will have quality jobs with health insurance, and we hope that Congress will answer his call to act and get our economy moving again.”

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Planned Parenthood Hudson Peconic, Inc (PPHP) is the 15th largest affiliate of Planned Parenthood Federation of America, and operates 12 medical centers in Suffolk, Westchester, Rockland, and Putnam Counties. In 2010, PPHP provided services to over 35,000 patients in nearly 70,000 visits. We conducted 1,900 education programs reaching over 35,000 youth and adults, and mobilized approximately 10,000 advocates to protect reproductive health care rights. PPHP has served the community for 78 years, and is dedicated to educating and empowering individuals to make responsible choices regarding their sexuality and sexual health. Planned Parenthood has done more to reduce the incidence of abortion and unintended pregnancy than any other health care provider or advocacy group. PPHP is headquartered in Hawthorne NY. For more information about PPHP services and programs, visit www.pphp.org. Find us on Facebook and MySpace, and follow us on Twitter.