Statement by Obama again in Debate re: mammograms at PP

[Paula O]

Last night's Debate brought up claims by our President again about mammograms being done at Planned Parenthood. Although I personally care very much about the lives of babies, both unborn and born, this thread is not intended for a discussion about politics or the Pro-Life issue. I found the below links interesting. Check 'em out: what do you think? Does anyone have references to validate this statement by President Obama and the CEO of PP that planned Parenthood does mammograms?

http://liveaction.org/blog/planned-p...mmogram-claim/
(Video of Cecile Richards, CEO of Planned Parenthood claimning that PP DOES mammograms and the documentation of follow up calls to PP clinics confirming that they don't))

WASHINGTON, D.C., March 30–A series of new undercover phone calls reveals that contrary to the claims of Planned Parenthood CEO Cecile Richards and other supporters of the nation’s largest abortion chain, the organization does not provide mammograms for women.
In the tapes, a Live Action actor calls 30 Planned Parenthood clinics in 27 different states, inquiring about mammograms at Planned Parenthood. Every Planned Parenthood, without exception, tells her she will have to go elsewhere for a mammogram, and many clinics admit that no Planned Parenthood clinics provide this breast cancer screening procedure. “We don’t provide those services whatsoever,” admits a staffer at Planned Parenthood of Arizona. Planned Parenthood’s Comprehensive Health Center clinic in Overland Park, KS explains to the caller, “We actually don’t have a, um, mammogram machine, at our clinics.”
Opponents of defunding Planned Parenthood have argued in Congress and elsewhere that the organization provides many vital health care services other than abortion, such as mammograms. Most prominently, Planned Parenthood CEO Cecile Richards recently appeared on The Joy Behar Show to oppose the Pence Amendment to end Planned Parenthood’s taxpayer subsidies, claiming, “If this bill ever becomes law, millions of women in this country are gonna lose their healthcare access–not to abortion services–to basic family planning, you know, mammograms.”
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"Anytime someone suggests to you that Planned Parenthood performs mammograms, I encourage you to share with them http://www.adfmedia.org/files/DOC702.pdf
from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services demonstrating that it’s untrue. No Planned Parenthood clinic in the country is authorized to perform mammograms. If they are nevertheless performing them, they are violating federal law.
Under the federal Mammogram Quality Standards Act, administered by HHS, “[n]o facility may conduct an examination or procedure…involving mammography” without a certification from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. While a 2004 amendment to this law permits some states to also authorize mammography facilities, these certificates are still issued under the authority of the FDA, and the FDA records all certificates and investigates facilities holding such certifications. In short, there is no uncertainty: if Planned Parenthood could perform mammograms, the FDA (and HHS) would know it.
When President Obama and other Planned Parenthood partisans were making their mammogram claims, Alliance Defending Freedom filed a Freedom of Information Act request to seek any certificates held by any Planned Parenthood clinic or affiliate in the country. The response from President Obama’s own HHS is that no such certificates exist. No Planned Parenthood affiliate in the nation possesses the necessary certification to perform mammograms under federal law. Subsequent e-mails to the department further confirmed this fact.
Federal law provides that anyone operating a mammography device without such a certificate is subject to substantial fines of up to $10,000. So when Cecile Richards, Kathleen Sebelius, or President Obama tell you that Planned Parenthood performs mammograms, they’re telling you that Planned Parenthood is subject to serious fines for violations of the Mammogram Quality Standards Act.
http://www.lifenews.com/2012/09/07/o...do-mammograms/

[KristinSchwick]

Glad you pointed this out. Thanks.

[karen z]

If this thread "is not intended for a discussion about politics or the Pro-Life issue" why the large and (at least to me) offensive poster of our president above? If this is about "mistakes" only then one should report mistakes made on both sides (fact checkers- including the moderator of the debate who apparently did fact check in real time- could help out with that). If we have to live with mistakes I would rather they be in the direction of trying to help women.

[Nancy L]

Planned Parenthood does not perform mammograms anywhere. They do breast exams and refer women out but they don't pay for mammograms. I believe other charities or Medicaid pay for mammograms for the poor and women without insurance. I didn't see the moderator fact check this--will have to look and see her source. For me it is not about whether they do or don't. I just want the truth on all issues in all elections.

[karen z]

Read again. The moderator did fact check in real time but caught someone else in a major lie (his picture is not posted, however). The moderator did not fact check enough in real time to catch all lies OR unintentional errors by both sides. The moderator (and candidates) are human. Humans make intentional and unintentional mistakes. Go figure.

So, breast exams but not mammograms. Seems like that could be helpful to women. My tumor was caught during a breast exam.

[StephN]

The same thought struck me after all the bruhaha between Komen and PP last year.

I just checked our Greater Northwest Planned Parenthood web site and Alaska has a program to PAY for mammograms after the primary insurance has been billed, if the person has that. Otherwise there is a fund up there to pick up the cost.

There may now be other PP locations that have enough private funds to do as Alaska in certain instances, since Komen no longer contributes to PP.

However, I don't think mammograms are available at the actual office locations. There are mobile units that come to designated places.

A woman CAN get a breast exam at most of the PP locations, as far as around here. I understand that mostly young women and underserved populations take advantage of PP.

P.S. Moderators should not be trying to fact check, but let the debators check each other as time allows and without going on a tangent.

[karen z]

Steph,
Thanks for this valuable information (and the work to dig it up).
K

[suzan w]

I agree with Karen Z. This site is not for political discussion...plenty of places for that.

[Jackie07]

But we do need accuate and timely information...

http://cnsnews.com/news/article/cath...ned-parenthood

[rhondalea]

The facts:

http://factcheck.org/2012/10/planned...nd-mammograms/

Planned Parenthood provides mammogram referrals the same way a gynecologist or primary care doctor would. (I don't know any doctors who do mammograms in their own offices.) You can log onto the site:

http://www.plannedparenthood.org/health-center/

Input a zip code or city. Each center has a link for "Women's Health Care". If you click the link, you will get a listing similar to this one:

Manville Health Center offers the following women's health services:

checkups when you have a reproductive/sexual health problem
breast exams
cervical cancer screening
hormone replacement therapy
LEEP (treatment of abnormal pap)
mammogram referrals
menopause and midlife — testing and treatment
Pap test
sexual response education
routine physicals for women age 14 and older
urinary tract infections — testing and treatment
vaginal infections — testing and treatment
Other services we may provide include help with irregular periods or no periods, painful periods, painful sex, bleeding between periods, menstrual problems (premenstrual syndrome) or even a lost tampon.
Women's health services are available:

during all business hours on a walk-in basis

Different centers offer some different services (see above for LEEP, which is not offered at all centers), but all those I looked at had the "mammogram referral" listing.

Finally, I would like to add my voice to those who disagree with bringing politics into this group. (A worthy exception would be if Fran Visco persuades one of the candidates to agree with her vision.)