The Big OH! blog

Back in the late 80s and early 90s when I began working in the area of HIV/AIDS people were dying at alarming rates.  We would test someone and if they tested positive, they only had about 6 months to 2 years to live.  Today it is a different story.  Many people living with HIV are very healthy and can expect to live a very long time. The advancement of medicines and early testing has made this possible.  HIV affects anyone and everyone.  One in three people who have HIV don’t even know it.  HIV like most of the other STD’s often show no symptoms. Do you want to know for sure if you or your partner have the HIV virus?  Then get tested; it only takes 20 minutes and it is free!!!  Call PPGOH and schedule an appointment.  Do yourself a favor…………….GYT!!

When I was in high school, we had a very limited sexual education class. We watched "The Miracle of Life" and then theteacher asked if we had any questions instead of having an actual discussion. My parents never talked about any of that stuff and I couldn't ask my brothers about things either. So like a typical teen, I learned from my peers and media around me. When I got to college, I took a Human Sexuality class and I was enthralled with the subject and all the aspects of Human Sexuality. 

After graduation, my mom told me that Planned Parenthood was hiring in one of their Health Centers, I applied,  got the job and fell more in love with reproductive health and rights. Through the years, I've been asked "why do you do what you do?" many times and it has been the same answer since day one. I do what I do because I want to be that person for someone that I didn't have when I was young. The moment when someone asks me questions that I know they would normally be very shy to ask; because I made them comfortable; that is the moment that I know I've been that someone.

-Lindsey

I have been doing HIV testing at PP for 23 years.  When I first started doing HIV testing it took 2 – 3 weeks to get your test results back and a positive test result had serious ramifications including difficult drug therapies and a seriously shortened expected life span.  Today the testing process is much different as is the outlook for most that test positive. People testing for HIV can get their results in 20 minute sand treating HIV is generally seen as treating a chronic illness, not a death sentence. It is important to me to communicate this to those who get tested and reassure them.  Care no matter what!!

Columbus, OH –Today, the Community and Family Advancement Committee passed the Six Week Abortion ban 11-4. The bill will now move to the house floor for consideration.

Prior to the committee vote, Planned Parenthood Advocates of Ohio held a press gaggle outside the committee room where abortion patient Tamara Mann was able to share her story with reporters:

"Life is not instantaneous. It is an arduous, miraculous, process. So many steps have to align -- so much has to go exactly right for a baby to take its first breath. When we start to think of life this way, the pro-choice/pro-life debates seem to me almost cruel. Neither accurately explains the moral nuance of each individual's situation or honors the complexity of creation. It is time to reframe the debate and talk more about what it would mean to honor the sanctity of life. To honor the actual lives of pregnant women and the potential lives they hold within them."

Planned Parenthood Advocates of Ohio Managing Director of Public Affairs Misha Barnes made the following statement regarding the six-week abortion ban:

“HB 69 is unconstitutional and unnecessary. Planned Parenthood will continue to fight to ensure that women retain the right to make personal decisions about their health in consultation with their physicians—not politicians.”

Columbus, OH – Today, U.S. Sen. Rob Portman voted for a bill to limit access to abortion services for victims of human trafficking. The bill failed to reach the 60-vote majority needed to move to a vote for final passage.

Misha Barnes, Managing Director of Public Affairs of Planned Parenthood Advocates of Ohio, made the following statement:

“We are saddened to see that, once again, Senate Leadership is willing to play politics at the expense of women’s health. Using a bill meant to aid victims of human trafficking as part of a broader agenda aimed at denying women access to safe, legal abortion, is reprehensible.”

“The majority of human trafficking victims are women and girls, and they need access to the full range of reproductive health care services without barriers."

“We are hopeful that a similar bill, without these health care restrictions, will be introduced soon. Today’s vote should serve as a signal to Sen. Portman, and others, that protecting women’s access to safe and legal medical care is not up for debate.”

BACKGROUND:

●      In a survey of 67 sex trafficking victims, more than half reported having had abortions, according to a report by Laura J. Lederer, a former Senior Advisor to the U.S. Department of State.

●      Nearly 3 out of 4 women surveyed said they had at least one pregnancy while trafficked, and 20% of respondents reported five or more pregnancies.

●      The women polled in the study also reported being forced to have sex with an average of 13 “buyers” a day.

●      Sixty percent of women and girls who come across the U.S. border report being raped along the dangerous journey, according to an Amnesty International survey.

Last week the Ohio Senate Medicaid, Health and Human Services Committee approved the appointment of former Ohio Turnpike Commissioner Rick Hodges as Director of the Ohio Department of Health. They held a hearing, but the only voice Sen. Shannon Jones (R-Springboro), who chairs the committee, was interested in was that of Highway Hodges. When asked if testimony from witnesses could be heard, Sen. Jones indicated that it isn’t her practice to hear citizen testimony.

Wow. What’s the use of a hearing if we the people cannot be heard? Several medical professionals and community members from around the state wished to testify but were refused. They submitted written testimony in hopes that legislators would read and address their concerns, but the table of testimony looked mostly untouched.

The confirmation of the Ohio Department of Health Director is critical to the health of our communities. The input of medical and public health professionals should be welcomed, not discarded, when vetting candidates for this vital role. Because of their education and experience, the experts wishing to testify offered insights and perspectives that could aid our legislators in making the best decision possible—not just an expedient or politic choice. That’s part of the democratic process, and it was side-stepped at the expense of Ohioans on Wednesday.

In a conversation with The Plain Dealer, Gov. John Kasich made the following statement: 

"I've already explained all the stuff I have to explain," Kasich said. "I've spent about 10 1/2 hours here with people like you and letting people across the state know how I feel about things. I've made all the comments I'm going to make about it."

This is the first year in Ohio election history that the incumbent gubernatorial candidate has not debated his challengers. His challengers instead debated each other in a forum at the Cleveland City Club last night. While we learned a lot about them and where they stand on the issues, we still have lots of questions for Kasich. Questions like….

Why won’t you debate your opponents? What are you hiding?

How does putting family planning providers at the bottom of a list for family planning funds help women’s health?

Why did you nominate someone with no health care experience to be the next ODH director?

Why won’t you allow women to make their own decisions about their bodies and their pregnancies?

Would you sign the so-called “heartbeat bill” if it landed on your desk?

Do you support the personhood movement?

To deny someone the freedom to marry because of their sexuality is wrong, and it's time to change that.  Sign our petition to support marriage equality.

Imagine a world where couples aren't shut out of the happiness of marriage. Together, we can create that world.