By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Journalist

The trend to defund the nation’s largest abortion provider continues as pro-life lawmakers in the North Carolina statehouse voted to override Democratic Gov. Bev Perdue’s veto, effectively stripping Planned Parenthood of all funding beginning July 1.

The Huffington Post is reporting that North Carolina has now become the third state in the U.S. to ban public funding of the abortion giant, following similar moves this year in Indiana and Kansas.  Without the near half-million in taxpayer funds that it receives every year, the nine clinics operated by Planned Parenthood of North Carolina (PPNC) will now have to curtail services.

“The biggest impact is gonna be on the men and women we serve,” said Melissa Reed, vice president of public policy for Planned Parenthood Health Systems. “There are 12- to 14-week waits for women to get into the health department for birth control or breast cancer screenings, but we can see patients the very same week. The health department relies on Planned Parenthood to fill that gap, and now we will be prohibited from serving as that essential safety net provider.”

It should be pointed out that while the reference to “breast cancer screening” is often made by Planned Parenthood spokespeople in the debate over taxpayer funding, mammography services are not provide by their clinics. The provide breast exams only, which are readily available elsewhere. Their clinics refer women elsewhere for mammograms.

After the state House voted to override the veto, House Speaker Thom Tillis told the Greensboro News-Record: “We think we’ve done something historic on several different levels.”

A short while later, the bill reached the Senate where Republicans hold a 31 seat majority in the 50-seat body. They had more than enough votes to ensure an override.

The new law is expected to be challenged in court.

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