As the Trump administration moved into defund international Planned Parenthood San Francisco’s elected women leaders are fighting back.
On Tuesday, Supervisor Hillary Ronen introduced a resolution that strongly denounced plans by the Trump administration to defund women’s health services through the repeal of the Affordable Care Act and cuts to Planned Parenthood. She was joined by all six women members of the Board of Supervisors, Sheriff Vicki Hennessy, Assessor Carmen Chu and members from Democratic County Central Committee and the City College of San Francisco board.
At the board of supes meeting today, President London Breed honored the work of the Women’s Community Clinic: “The women’s community clinic has provided high quality healthcare for all women despite insurance status and ability to pay and this is before Obamacare. When I say high quality, I mean it they go above and beyond to make sure their clients feel safe, nurtured and respected,” she said.
Breed spoke strongly in support of women’s health offering unequivocal support to care providers that focus on women’s health at a time when they’re facing grave challenges from the federal administration: “These are the kind of vital organizations we can not afford to lose. That is why I am happy to stand with all of my colleagues and dozens of activists this morning to fight for our reproductive rights and protect the values we hold dear. Despite our President’s threats to the affordable care act, to medicaid and to reproductive health providers all over the country we as a city are not backing down,” she said.
Ronen personally thanked the Women’s Community Clinic team: “I just have to tell the story of the breadth of the work you do. One day, I had the pleasure to go into an SRO (single room occupancy unit) hotel. We went door to door and Brit knew every single women in that building knew exactly what she was facing and brought special packages of things that she needed and it was something like I have never seen before,” she said.
“This morning made me incredibly proud to be a San Franciscan and incredibly proud to be providing health Women’s Community Clinic,” said Carlina Hansen, executive director of the Women’s Community Clinic. “You said loud and clear to the press, to the media and the world that the Board of Supervisors will not stand for what is happening in the world of women’s health. The Trump administration will not get the better of us and that San Francisco will stand for the women and the girls who need us the most,” she said.
The Women’s Community Clinic provides affordable and accessible health care services to Bay Area women and girls. The clinic provides healthcare to over 4000 women and girls every year and have been providing healthcare regardless of insurance status since 1999.
Ronen’s resolution “Commits the Board of Supervisors to doing “whatever is necessary to defend and maintain the universal healthcare access of women, girls and transgender women in San Francisco.”
Sup. Jane Kim gave a fiery speech as more than a 100,000 people gathered at Civic Center for the women’s march on Sunday: “I am proud to serve the city and county on the board of supervisors which for the first time in over 20 years has finally elected a majority of women to this board. I’m marching with them today President London Breed, Supervisor Malia Cohen, Sandra Lee Fewer and Katy Tang and we are committed to join you to be a wall against hate. We will legislate Trump the hell out of San Francisco. If Trump and the republicans defund Planned Parenthood the six of us will vote to fill that gap,” she said.
Supervisors noted that sacrifices will need to be made to seek money from city budget to cover the health care funding gap in case federal funding is cut off. The city is already facing budget constraints and law makers have been under immense pressure after Trump’s election as fear looms he may redirect federal dollars away from sanctuary cities like San Francisco.
As fears loom San Francisco’s elected women show no sign of backing down.
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While Trump may be able to limit federal funds to Planned Parenthood with a Republican Congress, it remains to be seen if the Affordable Care act will be repealed. Senator Charles Schumer the current minority leader stated on TV that there is a 50-50 chance that they probably won’t be able to repeal it.
Trump is playing with fire as many of the Senators and Congressional leaders are aware that you could be witnessing the type of public health crisis you see in Syria or Venezuela with hospital becoming defunded and spiraling death rates among the poor. We keep hearing that there is a new wonderful plan that is going to be even better than ACA but the reality is that there is no other plan.
So far every single mayor of every East Coast city has defied Trump’s vague orders and threats to halt sanctuary status or lose federal funding. The mayors of Philadelphia, Boston, Chicago and New York are all in agreement on this. Almost all the major cities in the United States are sanctuary cities, and they all receive a variety of federal funds for a variety of uses, including police work, DNA testing on crime suspects, public health and education, including HIV testing and prevention. We may see a barage of lawsuits filed by various cities and states in the federal courts.
Do they charge for their services or can anyone from the SFBA go, or just women? Serious question. TY.