Senator Dick Durbin Response to Title X

I talked about in my previous post about Barack Obama and his response to Title X funding. I took the opportunity to ask Fellow Illinois Senator Dick Durbin about his response to Title X.

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June 19, 2008

Mr. Michael Moehlenhof


Dear Mr. Moehlenhof:


Thank you for contacting me about federal funding for Planned Parenthood. I appreciate hearing from you.

Title X of the Public Health Service Act provides more than four million women with a wide range of services designed to improve maternal and infant health, lower the incidence of unintended pregnancy, and prevent abortions. Under Title X, the federal government provides grants to 86 public and private organizations for the provision of comprehensive family planning services and information. Grant recipients may include state and local health departments, hospitals, university health centers, independent clinics, public and non-profit agencies, and Planned Parenthood affiliates. These funds may be used for a wide range of family planning activities, including contraceptive education and services, abstinence education, and programs that combine both approaches.

This program has a proven record of success. Without this program, it has been estimated that an additional 1.2 million unintended pregnancies would occur every year, resulting in more than 500,000 additional abortions. I believe that we should encourage abstinence among our youth and support family planning efforts such as contraceptive use to avoid unintended pregnancies and decrease the number of abortions.

Thank you again for contacting me. Please feel free to keep in touch.

Sincerely,

Richard J. Durbin

United States Senator

RJD/td

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Sounds similar to what Senator Barack Obama said. It seems that Title X funding will remain for a long time within the borders of Illinois. It'll just continue to pave the way for abortions since funding is being indirectly allocated.