The Ohio governor and presidential candidate, John Kasich signed a bill on Sunday that prohibits the state from giving federal funding to Planned Parenthood. Making Ohio the 10th state to cut the organization’s funding following the undercover videos that exposed Planned Parenthood for selling body parts of the aborted fetuses.
The bill will prevent more than 1 million of federal funding to be given to clinics that offer HIV testing, breast and cervical cancer screenings and prevention of violence against women. Instead, the money will be reallocated to other eligible health providers in the state.
There has been a lot of pressure from citizens and fellow republicans to defund organizations that offer abortions, after a series of controversial videos were released revealing that Planned Parenthood officials were selling fetal tissue post-abortion for profit.
The Ohio governor signed the bill the following day after getting fifth place in the South Carolina Republican Primary. Although, these videos have ignited pressure from the public, he has made several decisions in the past that have been anti-abortion. So, his signature was expected.
Pro-abortion sympathizers such as Cecile Richards, the president of Planned Parenthood, have been disapproving of the decision saying that it “will have devastating consequences for women across Ohio.”
Through Kasich’s presidential campaign he has mentioned how important it is to help fund expecting mothers and newborn babies. Some voters may see his signature as contradictory and not helping women. However, Joe Andrews, a spokesmen of Kasich disagrees. He defends the bill by saying the funding is not disappearing instead it is being moved to other providers deem eligible.
“The Ohio Department of Health has at least 150 other sub-grantees and contractors for the affected grants and projects addressing such issues as new born babies, infant mortality, expectant mothers, violence against women, and minority HIV/AIDS,” said Andrews. “ODH will reallocate funding from ineligible providers under the new law to other currently eligible providers, ranging from local health departments and community organizations to hospitals and universities. These organizations will be required to submit proposals in order to receive funding.”
Again, it was no shock that Kasich sided against Planned Parenthood. So, he may lose some votes for this decision. But, if anything, it gets him some much needed press.