Planned Parenthood insists it is not illegally selling fetal tissue
An undercover video seeking to discredit Planned Parenthood has been circulating the Internet this week. People have posted the video, which suggests that Planned Parenthood illegally sells fetal tissue, on multiple social media outlets.
In the heavily edited video, the Center for Medical Progress claims that Planned Parenthood's reproductive health clinics are selling fetal tissue and organs. The group is known for monitoring medical ethics.
The person behind the Planned Parenthood video is the former research director for Live Action, the anti-choice group that released similar videos targeting Planned Parenthood for sex-selective abortions and sex-trafficking. Both of those videos were reportedly proven misleading.
Planned Parenthood insists that the video exposes no concrete evidence of any type of scandal. Planned Parenthood explained in a statement:
"In health care, patients sometimes want to donate tissue to scientific research that can help lead to medical breakthroughs, such as treatments and cures for serious diseases. Women at Planned Parenthood who have abortions are no different. At several of our health centers, we help patients who want to donate tissue for scientific research, and we do this just like every other high-quality health care provider does — with full, appropriate consent from patients and under the highest ethical and legal standards. There is no financial benefit for tissue donation for either the patient or for Planned Parenthood. In some instances, actual costs, such as the cost to transport tissue to leading research centers, are reimbursed, which is standard across the medical field."
Despite the fact that the events in the video are seemingly legal, it's likely that we'll see an effort to defund Planned Parenthood this week. Even though Planned Parenthood has done nothing illegal, people are very uncomfortable watching a doctor describe abortions so matter-of-factly.
While this discomfort is perfectly understandable and legitimate, it doesn't discredit Planned Parenthood and the much-needed health care it provides to people.
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