From the Clinic to the Bathroom
Over the past year of President Donald Trump’s second administration, key funding has been withheld from Planned Parenthood through the combination of legislative, executive, and federal actions. This has resulted in the closure of over 70 Planned Parenthood clinics. The latest in this string of victories is the closure of a fifty-year-old location in Lakeland, Florida, on March 13, which attributes its closing to the federal law that prevents Planned Parenthood from accepting Medicare.
Now, local news outlets are reporting the clinic as a loss to the community, which served women by providing medical treatment, including postpartum care. It is also reported by news outlets that this location did not provide abortions, although they did provide services for transgender patients beginning in 2016.
A spokesperson for Planned Parenthood Florida, Michelle Quesada, has confirmed for news outlets that women will continue to receive access to Planned Parenthood treatment throughout the rest of Florida in person and via telehealth, which has recently been expanded to deal specifically with the closures of other clinics.
The response from Planned Parenthood is a foreseeable one and is supported largely by the introduction of the chemical abortion pill, which can be taken inside women’s homes without medical oversight. Planned Parenthood boasts a 99% effectiveness rate if taken during the ninth and tenth week of pregnancy. In fact, it is marketed on their website as a “similar” experience to a miscarriage, thereby giving the appearance of a “natural and less invasive” experience.
In truth, pro-life advocates have reason to celebrate the closure of each and every Planned Parenthood clinic. As reported by news outlets discussing the Lakeland closure, these clinics begin to serve young girls and become a nefarious part of the community. But it is also important for advocates to acknowledge that the frontlines of this battle are being moved from behind clinic walls to the homes.
A recent comment left on social media by an E.R. doctor has begun to circulate that reveals the difficult challenge that lies ahead for pro-life advocates in the wake of the readily accessible online abortion pills. She wrote on a video, created by another pro-choice advocate, promoting the stocking-up of abortion pills to have availability to hand out to others. “I’m an ER doctor. I love that this is accessible in such an easy way. But please, please if you find yourself pregnant and take these online abortion pills, it is crucial that you follow up with an OB-GYN to make sure that it worked and that it worked completely. I have taken care of multiple women who took these online abortion pills and then came to the ER because they were having severe bleeding and pain weeks later and they ended up having retained products of conception left behind, and had to go for emergency D&Cs. You don’t have to tell your OB that you took online abortion pills, you can tell them that you were pregnant and just started having a bunch of bleeding, there would be no way for them to tell if you took abortion pills vs had a spontaneous miscarriage. But you need to make sure the uterus is empty after taking these kinds of pills or you can get so, so sick and possibly die.”
The current landscape of this movement is evolving into something far more sinister than the previous version in a sterile “medical” setting. It has become increasingly obvious that the shifting terrain of the abortion industry demands that those who advocate for life also evolve and provide a steady presence in the private arena.
Options for Women
4504 Florida Ave S., Lakeland, FL 33813
(863) 393-6988
An alternative available for women in Lakeland is the Options for Women clinic, who provide a variety of services including:
STD/STI testing
Abortion Pill reversal
Abortion aftercare
Prenatal/Parenting services
Women’s wellness referalls
Pregnancy Tests
Limited ultrasounds
