Planned Parenthood Provides Crucial Health Care for Many Latinas
(PRWEB) September 29, 2015 -- During the mid-1970s, I worked as an outreach coordinator for Planned Parenthood of South Texas in San Antonio. At the time, Planned Parenthood was the only organization that provided access to critical health care services for free. Almost 50 years later, I am proud to see that Planned Parenthood continues to play a critical role in ensuring that women and men in Texas have access to affordable, preventative health care. Each year in Texas, Planned Parenthood affiliates serve approximately 175,000 patients, 30 percent of whom are Hispanic. Today, it is concerning that funding for such an important organization is being threatened and that an organization which has played a critical role in women’s health has been used as a wedge in divisive politics.
Texas needs Planned Parenthood. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Texas has one of the country’s highest rates of teen pregnancies. In 2011, Texas had the fifth-highest teen pregnancy rate in the country. We need organizations like Planned Parenthood to discuss family planning and provide information on contraception and sex education to young people in need. Planned Parenthood of Greater Texas has served this need and has helped to reduce the number of unplanned teen pregnancies.
Planned Parenthood also serves a critical role in providing preventative diagnostic services for women. As an outreach coordinator for Planned Parenthood, I was responsible for bringing information regarding Planned Parenthood’s preventative services to poor communities — particularly areas in low income housing. In that role, I spoke to countless women regarding the diagnostic benefits of having yearly mammograms, as breast cancer has and continues to be a leading cause of cancer death among Latinas. Because almost 40 percent of Latinas lack health insurance, places such as Planned Parenthood fill a critical need by providing women free access to breast cancer screenings.
In addition, Planned Parenthood provides free cervical cancer screenings, a service that is particularly important in Texas. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Latinas suffer from the second-highest rate of cervical cancer, and in Texas, cervical cancer and mortality rates are even higher than the national average for Latinas. Texas also has the highest cervical cancer rate in the nation.
Through this program, Planned Parenthood cares for more than 3,000 women a year. In cities such as Waco, it is the only provider. Because Latinas suffer from some of the highest rates of cervical and breast cancer, we need access to affordable routine screenings that will help to prevent these deadly and preventable diseases.
I continue to believe in Planned Parenthood’s mission and know firsthand of its tireless effort to bring quality health care services to women. As Latinos, we must fight to keep centers such as Planned Parenthood open to ensure that our young people have access to sex education classes and choices of contraception. Our sons and daughters have limitless potential, and we must ensure that they have the opportunity to realize their dreams.
In addition, Latinas need access to affordable diagnostic screenings that could help save their lives.
Planned Parenthood has served our community well, and we must now stand with Planned Parenthood to ensure it continues to serve communities across the country.
Lourdes Galvan is a San Antonian who has been a LULAC member for more than 40 years.
Paloma Zuleta, LULAC, http://lulac.org/, 202-812-4477, [email protected]
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