The Struggle For Autonomy

In the journal article, “Planned Parenthood At Risk,” from the New England Journal of Medicine, George P. Topulos, M.D., Michael F. Greene, M.D., and Jeffrey M. Drazen, M.D., report that Planned Parenthood is under attack by anti-abortion groups. The article was released in September 2015 when a fabricated video surfaced showing the organization's misuse of fetal tissue donations. Topulos et al. acknowledge Planned Parenthood for following ethical guidelines and support the utilization of fetal tissue that was donated by women in order to medical purposes. In 2013, data collected from Planned Parenthood show that the organization “provided services to 2.7 million women, men, and young people during 4.6 million health center visits. At least 60% of these patients benefited from public health coverage programs such as the nation’s family-planning program (Title X) and Medicaid. At least 78% of these patients lived with incomes at or below 150% of the federal poverty level.” The authors report that Planned Parenthood has provided some of the essential services such as “400,000 Pap tests, nearly 500,000 breast examinations, nearly 4.5 million tests for sexually transmitted illnesses (including HIV), and treatments” to their patients.

Planned Parenthood was established because Margaret Sanger's believed in providing women with a safe environment for receiving proper health care. In the journal article, “Planned Parenthood And The Next Generation Of Feminist Activists,” Dawn Laguens argue that despite the belief that millennials are not as active in important causes such as the feminist movement or their thoughts on abortion rights, the younger generation is more involved than many people believe. Planned Parenthood has played  a significant role in the lives of many young women, as well as the negative effects that would transpire due to defunding Planned Parenthood. The problem is not that millennials have a limited understanding of these issues but the it is the poor method of communication. Laguens reports that in 2011, “state legislatures nearly tripled the previous record of provisions restricting abortion” which is the sum of one hundred and thirty-five. Laguens claims that in mid-2012, “states enacted thirty-nine new provisions that restrict a woman's access to safe and legal abortion.” In some states, prior to an abortion, the mandatory ultrasound laws which are in place to require physicians to perform an ultrasound and deliver information that is not based on science. Due to these restrictions, it is crucial that the younger generation understand the seriousness of these issues in order to move forward and “deliver on the promise of Roe v. Wade, the promise of equity and equality that generations of women have fought for, the promise of a world where women make their own decisions and have full access to healthcare, no matter who they are or where they live.” Society should strengthen these feminists beliefs and allow the younger generation to fully grasp the issues surrounding women’s rights instead of denying them the right to make their own choices.

              It is imperative that women are thoroughly educated on the resources that are available to them and necessary for their overall well-being. In the medical journal article, “Ethical Issues Relating To Reproduction Control And Women’s Health,” from the International Journal of Gynecology And Obstetrics, J. G. Schenker and  V. H. Eisenberg emphasize the importance of women’s reproductive rights. Schenker and Eisenberg praise the development of various methods of contraception and insist on the positive impact they have on women’s health such as lowering the risk of sexually transmitted disease, endometrial and ovarian cancer. The pro-life belief of a fetus as a “patient” denounces women’s autonomy. Schenker and Eisenberg advocate that women have the right to abortion, their basic health care needs and they are free to make their own choices for which they should not be condemned by society.