Susan G. Komen reverses decision, backs off cuts

The Susan G. Komen Foundation released a statement Friday that announced the reversal of their controversial decision to cut some funding to Planned Parenthood.

According to The Washington Post, the group made the announcement Tuesday that it was cutting some of its funding to Planned Parenthood but failed to cite an exact reason why, except that it did not plan to fund organizations under investigation because it would not fulfill the fiduciary responsibility the Komen Organization had to its donors.

“We will amend the criteria to make clear that disqualifying investigations must be criminal and conclusive in nature and not political. That is what is right and fair,” said the statement the organization released Friday.

The decision was not related to the fact that Planned Parenthood has been under investigation for illegally funding abortions, said Komen President Elizabeth Thompson Thursday.

MSNBC said the announcement set off a huge backlash. According to a report on Good Morning America Friday morning, protests came from senators, affiliates, individual supporters of Planned Parenthood on the Internet and even employees. Twenty-six senators were urging Komen to change their decision, and seven Komen affiliates in California publicly announced they opposed the decision. One top Komen official even resigned, with another threatening to quit.

Those who have been helped by Planned Parenthood’s services had strong reactions to the decision.

“It’s a detriment to the community and to the women they can serve and know they can serve that they’re not providing these services any longer,” said Monique Benoit on Good Morning America Friday morning. Benoit found a lump in her breast through a screening Planned Parenthood helped her get, and she was able to have the lump removed.

In the statement released Friday, the organization said they would still donate money toward the grants they were already funding.

“We want to apologize to the American public for recent decisions that cast doubt upon our commitment to our mission of saving women’s lives,” the organization said in the statement. “We will continue to fund existing grants, including those of Planned Parenthood, and preserve their eligibility to apply for future grants, while maintaining the ability of our affiliates to make funding decisions that meet the needs of their communities.”

Though the move was met with negativity and was eventually reversed, there was a positive outcome from the controversy. When the public learned the breast cancer foundation was going to pull their funding, they began donating large amounts of money. In the span of a few days, Planned Parenthood raised $1 million, significantly more than the foundation usually brings in from the Komen Foundation, which his $680,000 a year, according to the Friday report on Good Morning America, which also reported that New York City Mayor Bloomberg had pledged hundreds of thousands of dollars of his own money to the foundation. MSNBC reported Bloomberg pledged $250,000 to Planned Parenthood.