An application for specialty certification uploaded by the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology (ABOG) has revealed that members of abortion organizations have deep ties to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), and are likely disseminating Title X family planning funds, taxpayer dollars earmarked for family planning resources. The information came to light after a previous Live Action News article exposed the fact that ABOG was seeking a new subspecialty certification in “Complex Family Planning,” which requires those in such fellowships be trained in abortion, including late-term abortion.
One of those “fellowships” is the Fellowship in Family Planning (FFP), which was established by Dr. Philip Darney at the University of California, San Francisco, and is administered by a national office at the Bixby Center for Global Reproductive Health at the University of California, San Francisco. One reason FFP was established might have something to do with the shrinking number of abortion providers. According to the Bixby Center’s website, the “number of US abortion providers decreased by 38% between 1982 and 2005, and some 87% of US counties do not have an abortion provider.”
FFP’s website makes it clear that abortion is their mission, writing, “To ensure that quality abortion and contraception are valued as core essential components of women’s health. To develop leaders in clinical care, science, education and advocacy to ensure all people have access to the abortion and contraception they want and need.”
Fellowship in Family Planning (FFP) mission statement is abortion (Image credit: June 2018 screen shot from FFP website)
According to its website, the Fellowship in Family Planning (FFP) is a “two-year fellowship focused on subspecialist training in research, teaching and clinical practice in abortion and contraception…and they play an active role in discussions in the media related to family planning access and advocate for their patients in popular media outlets.”
FFP is offered at several universities throughout the United States, as well as one in Canada.
In one example, a New York clinical site for the FFP is located at Mount Sinai Hospital and Mount Sinai Beth Israel where late-term training is offered at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and at Planned Parenthood, under the supervision of the director, Britt Lunde, MD.
FFP Mt Sinai School of Medicine trains abortion at Planned Parenthood
FFP is deeply entrenched in abortion, and has ties to the The Kenneth J. Ryan Residency Training Program in Family Planning and Abortion (“Ryan Program”), which, according to the American Board of Medical Specialists, (ABMS), “was successfully launched as a result of the FFP.”
“Sixty-eight of the 90 Ryan Programs are currently directed by fellowship graduates,” ABMS writes.
A screen from FFP’s Facebook page (below), “about us,” makes no apologies that they are all about abortion:
Fellowship in Family Planning FFP FB Page (Image credit: Facebook)
The Kenneth J. Ryan Residency Training Program in Abortion and Family Planning was founded in 1999 by Dr. Uta Landy, a former director of the National Abortion Federation and a recipient of PPFA’s infamous Margaret Sanger award, who, according to the Bixby Center, established “one of the first abortion clinics in New York after legalization in 1970, and became the first executive director of the National Abortion Federation in 1979.” She was recently caught in undercover footage from the Center for Medical Progress talking about late-term abortions.
In addition, ABMS application notes, “Fellowship graduates lead the National Medical Committee of Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA)…” and FFP graduates present or contribute at several conferences, including:
- The Annual Clinical and Scientific Meeting of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG)
- American Society of Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) annual meetings
- National Abortion Federation meetings
- North American Forum on Family Planning
The FFP also has ties to the Society of Family Planning.
In 2002, the Directors of the FFP agreed to be the founding members for the Society of Family Planning. A letter included in the ABMS application, written by Stephanie Teal, MD, notes, “The Society of Family Planning (SFP)… founding members are largely Directors of the Fellowship in Family Planning (FFP), including Dr. Daniel Mishell, one of the founders of the first OB/GYN subspecialties and a founding FFP Director… [a]ll of our Board Presidents have been Directors of the FFP, and many of our At-large Board Members have been FFP graduates, associate directors, and Fellowship research reviewers. We enjoy and nurture a mutually supportive relationship with the FFP leadership and community to enhance the science of family planning and guide evidence based practice.”
Society of Family Planning has ties to Family Planning FFP and abortion (Image: Stephanie Teal letter in ABMS application)
Previous Live Action News articles have documented that the Society of Family Planning’s mission is to support research on contraception and abortion. SFP also funds the Guttmacher Institute, and pledged support of Planned Parenthood during the fetal body parts investigation.
These close connections to abortion and providers say much about the FFP.
For this reason, it was concerning to discover that, according to ABMS application (emphasis added):
Fellowship graduates now lead the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) Abortion Surveillance and contribute to the CDC’s and World Health Organization’s (WHO) clinical standards in contraceptive and abortion care, advancing women’s health and pregnancy prevention with a special focus on the family planning needs of complex patient populations.
Family Planning FFP ties to abortion at CDC per ABMS application
The Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) Abortion Surveillance documents the numbers of abortions, as well as verifies abortion-related deaths nationwide. The most recent report is based off of data from 2014.
And, according to a letter from Lee Warner, PhD, MPH Chief, Women’s Health and Fertility Branch at the CDC, dated April of 2018, “Over 30 clinicians and researchers from the Fellowship community have participated in developing CDC’s national contraception guidance, and many more have disseminated and implemented the guidance throughout the country.”
HHS and CDC praise Fellowship on Family Planning abortion providers
The letter notes that the CDC will continue to rely on FFP, adding that, “The Fellowship in Family Planning is a key partner in CDC’s activities to address complex issues in family planning provision and improve the health of women, couples, and families across the United States and globally.”
In addition, the ABMS application states that Title X family planning funds are “distributed by the National Family Planning and Reproductive Health Association (NFPRHA), for whom many in the FFP community are consultants. Complex family planning subspecialists take referrals from these clinics for medically complex patients… ”
ABMS application claims Fellowship in Family Planning abortion providers distribute Title X funds
According to its website, NFPRHA “spearheads efforts to promote resources and support for the program on Capitol Hill, with federal agencies, and in national coalitions. NFPRHA works to bolster support for expanded funding opportunities for Title X and develops strategies to reinforce the importance of the publicly funded family planning network and its integral role as a part of the public health safety net. NFPRHA further works to preserve the integrity of the program as a supporter of a diverse network of high quality family planning providers.”
Integrity?
A closer look at the NFPRHA website shows that supporters include two abortion funding philanthropist organizations:
- The David & Lucile Packard Foundation
- The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation
The NFPRHA website admits it works to “maintain access to and coverage for abortion services.”
National Family Planning and Reproductive Associates is about abortion (Image: screenshot taken June 25, 2018)
The website also added that the “NFPRHA believes that abortion is a medical service that must be legal, safe and accessible to all women who seek it. NFPRHA supports informed consent and full options counseling for all who wish it.”
Live Action News has previously documented how the only “option” pregnant women receive at Title X-funded Planned Parenthood is abortion, not prenatal care or adoption services.
A lawsuit recently filed by Planned Parenthood and NFPRHA over Title X funds claims that “NFPRHA members account for 84% of all Title X grantees, in 46 states and the District of Columbia; NFPRHA members operate or fund over 3,500 Title X project health centers and provide family planning services to more than 3.7 million patients annually.”
The lawsuit fails to mention the FFP association.
Title X family planning dollars are funded by the taxpayers. The stranglehold of profiteers like Planned Parenthood repeatedly violating mandatory reporting laws on the sexual abuse of children, as well as abortion supporters like FFP and NFPRHA, on Title X funds needs to end.
Recently, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued a proposal to update regulations governing Title X. The update would guarantee that “Title X programs may not directly or indirectly facilitate, promote, or encourage abortion in any way.” The rule, published in the Federal Register for public comments, states that “the Department proposes to change the Title X regulations to eliminate the requirement that Title X projects provide abortion referral and counseling”.
The public is encouraged to comment on the rule changes here or here.
