Komen apologizes, says it will continue to fund Planned Parenthood

GlobalPost

The Susan G. Komen Foundation has apologized and reversed its decision to cut off funding for Planned Parenthood after facing intense criticism from lawmakers and women's health advocates and a fierce backlash from donors.

On its website, the foundation said, "We want to apologize to the American public for recent decisions that cast doubt upon our commitment to our mission of saving women’s lives."

It went on to state, "We have been distressed at the presumption that the changes made to our funding criteria were done for political reasons or to specifically penalize Planned Parenthood. They were not."

More on GlobalPost: Susan G. Komen ends funding for Planned Parenthood

The Komen Foundation and it's founder and CEO Nancy G. Brinker insisted that the decision to cut funding for Planned Parenthood was not due to Planned Parenthood providing abortions, but because of policy issues and a desire to improve how grantees were selected, according to The Los Angeles Times.

Brinker said, "You have to be sure you are granting to the right people."

Cecil Richards, the president of Planned Parenthood, told KTLA, "This is a result of a very ugly and aggressive campaign by right-wing organizations to bully the Komen foundation and keep them from working with Planned Parenthood."

More on GlobalPost: Mollie Williams, top Susan G. Komen official, resigned over decision to cut Planned Parenthood

In an official press release posted on its website today, Komen tried to make amends, stating, "We will continue to fund existing grants, including those of Planned Parenthood, and preserve their eligibility to apply for future grants, while maintaining the ability of our affiliates to make funding decisions that meet the needs of their communities."

The rule that prevented Komen from funding Planned Parenthood specified that organizations under investigation cannot receive funding, however, Komen said the rule would be amended to reflect that "disqualifying investigations must be criminal and conclusive in nature and not political."

Planned Parenthood said in a statement, "We are now heartened that we can continue to work in partnership toward our shared commitment to breast health for the most underserved women," reported Reuters.

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