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Residents and Planned Parenthood leaders urge Washtenaw County to provide bridge funding
Summary
Multiple residents and Planned Parenthood of Michigan leaders testified at the July 1 meeting asking the board to approve one-time bridge funding to preserve reproductive and family-planning services amid federal funding cuts; Planned Parenthood CEO Paula Thornton Greer highlighted equity and local impact (about 7,000 visits/year at the local health center).
Several residents and health-care leaders used public comment to urge the board to approve one-time bridge funding to sustain Planned Parenthood services in Washtenaw County while the organization navigates reductions in federal Title X funding. Mallory Shea, who said her first gynecological appointment was at Planned Parenthood, described receiving vital care when uninsured and asked the board to "approve 1 time bridge funding to help preserve access to reproductive health care in Washtenaw County." Amy Belfer, who said she will soon move to Ypsi Township, described clinical care she received for polycystic ovarian syndrome and called the Ann Arbor Health Center "a critical provider" of family-planning and reproductive health services.
Paula Thornton Greer, identified herself as "president and CEO of Planned Parenthood of Michigan," stressed equity and said the organization serves many low-income patients: "At our Power Family Health Center here in this county, nearly 1 in 4 patients we serve live at or below the federal poverty level," and she said that center provides "7,000 visits a year." Commissioners thanked speakers and said they would consider bridge funding; later on the agenda the board moved a resolution that would allocate $500,000 of undesignated county funds to Planned Parenthood of Michigan as part of a slate of single-reading items.
