Getting the Facts Out: Controversy and Confusion over Health Clinic

Recently, an email and phone call firestorm has erupted over a rather technical resolution on the County Commission's agenda regarding health services provided to uninsured and under-insured women at a health center in Springdale (the center is operated by Planned Parenthood, but does not provide any abortion or abortion-related services).

The Enquirer blogged about this here: http://news.cincinnati.com/apps/pbcs.dll/section?Category=blog02&plckController=Blog&plckScript=blogScript&plckElementId=blogDest&plckBlogPage=BlogViewPost&plckPostId=Blog%3aec38bb2b-982e-46ba-819a-da01a547e8eaPost%3a93d976af-1513-4172-82bd-293084376438&sid=sitelife.cincinnati.com

Given the amount of interest that has erupted over this item (perhaps as many as 1,000 emails from across the country), I am providing a factual description of the item:

I hope this email provides clarity about what information I have garnered to date. (I apologize in advance for the length of this, but it turns out to be quite complicated.)

1. THESE ARE NOT HAMILTON COUNTY DOLLARS.

(Some emails were concerned about the impact of this expenditure on the County’s budget). These dollars are a direct pass-through from the State of Ohio that go through the Hamilton County Family & Children First Council (HCFCF)—they are not Hamilton County dollars (in other words, they have no impact on our budget, or our budget’s problems). These dollars have been spent for years from the State budget on these services at a number of facilities, including the Springdale location. Still, of course, these are taxpayer dollars, and you have every right to know what they are paying for.

(Note: the HCFCF was created by statute by the Ohio General Assembly, at the direction of Gov. George Voinovich. Although one commissioner sits on the board, it is independent from the Board of County Commissioners—its membership is mandated by state law. We do not approve or execute its contracts.)


2. THE DOLLARS INVOLVED HERE SUPPORT A STAND-ALONE HEALTH CENTER IN SPRINGDALE THAT PROVIDES IMPORTANT HEALTH SERVICES, BUT NOT ABORTION SERVICES.

This money goes to a stand-alone health clinic in Springdale—a health clinic that screens for health problems and provides health services, but which does not provide abortion services, and has no capability to provide such services. What are provided are critical services that screen and treat the health of low-income women, including:

o screens for cervical, breast and colorectal cancer
o screens for alcohol, tobacco or illicit drug use
o screens for intimate partner domestic violence
o information on healthy eating, exercise, and obesity prevention
o annual PAP test
o prescription and referral for a mammogram, and rectal examination, for women over 40
o counseling on STD testing, and administration of an STD test
o contraception counseling for those who request it
o Smoking cessation intervention
o This center does NOT provide abortions services.

3. BECAUSE IT INVOLVES A STAND-ALONE CLINIC, THIS FUNDING IS NOT RELATED TO AND DOES NOT IMPACT ABORTION SERVICES.

The dollars spent at this health center are not related, and have nothing to do with, abortion services. This is a stand-alone health center, and the dollars are not fungible. In other words, a reduction in these funds would mean one of two things: 1) it would simply reduce critical health services at this center, for women without adequate health care, or 2) the women it serves would have to pay a higher cost for these critical health services. Either way, the result would be that preventive health services would be reduced, leading to higher costs on the emergency end, and poorer community health.

The work provided and dollars spent in this health center have no impact on abortion services, which are paid for by those who choose that service (not public money) at a location across town. In fact, this is no different than the case of federal dollars. Under the Hyde Amendment, federal dollars CAN NOT be spent on abortion services. Still, federal dollars are spent on locations such as this that are wholly separate and provide health services. These funds must only go to those separate services, and there is very close auditing to ensure that everything is separate. Those same procedures to ensure complete independence and separation take place here.

4. THE RESOLUTION IS NOT A FUNDING RESOLUTION.

One other important fact: the resolution before the County Commission is not a discretionary item to fund a grant or a program, or enter into a contract. As explained above, the County Commissioners do not approve contracts or expenditures of the HCFCF. This was a payment made months ago by the Children and Family First Council, for (non-abortion related) health services provided months ago at the Springdale Center. I as a County Commissioner don’t have control over the Council, and do not vote on their payments/contracts.

But in this instance, the HCFCF staff made a technical processing error—specifically, they failed to obtain a purchase order for the services in question. Because of that error, the resolution before us simply affirms that there were dollars available to pay for this service at the time, earlier this year, that the services were due. Voting “yes” to the resolution simply affirms, as a matter of law, that such funds were available at that time—and indeed, there is no question, they were. (Voting "no" would be stating that those funds were not available—which would be knowingly voting for something that is legally and factually false!).

I realize people will still have strong and different opinions about where to go from here. At the very least, I hope this explains better just what the item before us is.