The UL had an article recently on HHS taking $7 million away from nursing homes. This is $7,000,000.00 million that was approved in the 2014-2015 budget but that HHS had gone over in other areas. NH should protect life in all of its stages and regardless of the condition. People whose medical condition require nursing home treatment are still people.
HHS Commissioner Nick Toumpas says there are not any other options and Hassan says that taking money away from caring for seniors and the disabled in nursing homes is “fiscally responsible.” What would be fiscally responsible is to stop subsidizing abortion clinics and use that money to care for people in nursing homes.
When HHS submitted its budget requests in the winter/spring of 2013, HHS asked for $335,000 in family planning funds – similar to requests under Governor Lynch. Governor Hassan increased this to $900,000 and then awarded contracts in the amount of over $1.25 million in state funds. Hassan claims that this is just “restoring” funding of Planned Parenthood, but that is not a true statement.
First, unlike in 2011, Planned Parenthood was seeing a greatly increased amount of funding due to the expansion of Medicaid. Second, the Concord Feminist abortion clinic received funding under Hassan’s budget that had not received any state grants under Governor Lynch. The Concord Feminist abortion clinic used the state funding not to provide medical care to people in need of care (such as those residing in nursing homes) but rather used this funding to pay the salary of a full time “outreach coordinator.”
This “Outreach Coordinator” as detailed by the Concord Monitor, speaks in schools, holds candlelight vigils and holds signs outside the abortion clinic to protest those who object to using tax dollars to subsidize abortion clinics. Wouldn’t it be better if the Department of Health and Human Services used the funds budgeted to care for people in nursing homes to actually care for people in nursing homes and not pay for people to hold signs outside of abortion clinics or hold candlelight vigils?
