Another Abortion Record at Planned Parenthood.(Statistical Data Included)

The colors are bright, the layout bold and contemporary. A picture of a mother and baby graces the inside cover of "Taking Charge of Today, Choosing Our Tomorrow." Yet this is hardly some vibrant celebration of life. This is Planned Parenthood Federation of America's 2000-2001 Annual Report.

Another year has gone by, and another nearly 200,000 babies have lost their lives at Planned Parenthood clinics. It's a new record, but the same old song.

While national abortion trends over the last several years have been down, abortions at Planned Parenthood have climbed steadily. According to the report, 197,070 abortions were performed at Planned Parenthood clinics in 2000, a 7.8% increase over the total in 1999 (*1) - - with this latest figure representing the highest total Planned Parenthood has ever recorded.

The theme of the report is "Taking Charge of Today, Choosing Our Tomorrow," and one of Planned Parenthood's explicit goals is to "preserve - - and expand - - access to abortion services." A quick glance at the report shows that Planned Parenthood means it.

Under "Ensuring Access to Abortion," Planned Parenthood highlights its efforts to defeat, in courts or in legislatures, "anti-choice" laws or bills, such as those that would have required the involvement of parents in the abortion decisions of minors or would have prohibited the use of state tax dollars for abortions.

One of the most prominently featured activities in this section of the report was Planned Parenthood's creation of the "ROEvBUSH.com" web site, which sought to block the confirmation of President Bush's pro-life nominee for Attorney General, John Ashcroft. While he was ultimately confirmed, Planned Parenthood says the 42 votes marshaled against Ashcroft served to put the new administration "on notice about the strength of our movement and our determination to fight any anti-choice Supreme Court nomination to the end."

Another "achievement" touted in the report was the delivery of grant money which helped 88 Planned Parenthood clinics offer RU486, the chemical abortifacient approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 2000, to clients seeking an alternative to surgical abortion. The report does not indicate how many of the nearly 200,000 abortions it performed were chemically-induced or how many were surgical. Planned Parenthood's national office held three "audio conferences" for its affiliates. Two were devoted to chemical abortion.