More than 450 Granite Staters Urge Executive Council to Support Family Planning Program Funding for NH’s Reproductive & Sexual Health Clinics
Reproductive Equity Now delivered a petition to the Executive Council ahead of tomorrow’s vote on Family Planning Contracts
CONCORD (November 28, 2023) – Reproductive Equity Now, an organization dedicated to protecting and expanding reproductive freedom across New England, today delivered a petition with more than 450 signatures to the New Hampshire Executive Council, urging the councilors to support Family Planning Program funding for the state’s reproductive and sexual health clinics. The Executive Council is expected to vote tomorrow on these contracts for Lovering Health Center of Greenland, Equality Health Center of Concord, and Planned Parenthood of Northern New England.
New Hampshire’s Family Planning Program supports New Hampshire’s reproductive and sexual health clinics in providing basic, essential health care to Granite Staters, including birth control, annual exams, pregnancy tests, STI tests and treatment, and cancer screenings. The Family Planning Program prioritizes subsidized care for low-income and uninsured patients. However, over the past two years, the Executive Council has voted four times to defund Family Planning Programs at Lovering Health Center, Equality Health Center, and Planned Parenthood of Northern New England, jeopardizing care for thousands of patients. Councilor Cinde Warmington has been the lone vote in support of these three New Hampshire clinics and their patients, while Councilors Joe Kenney, Ted Gatsas, Janet Stevens, and David Wheeler have consistently voted to deny these New Hampshire communities the reproductive health care they need.
“New Hampshire’s reproductive health clinics are essential to the health and wellness of our communities. Despite the critical services they provide to Granite Staters, the Executive Council has continuously put politics over public health and left these clinics without the resources, funding, and support they need to care for their patients,” said Christina Warriner, New Hampshire State Director of Reproductive Equity Now. “This petition is a clear mandate from New Hampshire voters that the Executive Council must stand with our state’s clinics and the patients they serve and fund Family Planning Programs. Enough is enough. Support our health care.”
Over 450 New Hampshire residents signed Reproductive Equity Now’s petition urging the Executive Council to support these contracts, and many shared why New Hampshire’s reproductive and sexual health clinics are critical to the health of their community:
“My partner is an OR nurse, and had a HIV exposure at work. He was able to get an appointment that worked with his schedule, walk to the clinic, and was treated wonderfully. It is so important for health centers like that to be accessible, right in the heart of our community!”
- Fedelma M., Concord
“When you deny funding to Equality Health Center (EHC), you are denying critical health care to people in our community. EHC never wants to turn a patient away. Visible and accessible on Main Street for nearly 50 years, EHC has been a dependable resource to meet community needs. Please do not look away. Someone you love could be the next patient in the door.”
- Eileen E., Hooksett
“I value The Joan Lovering Health Center for offering non judgmental reproductive health care education and services for all people on the Seacoast. The skilled and compassionate staff of the Lovering Center is providing an essential service and making a positive difference for so many people here on the Seacoast.”
- Alice P., Greenland
“I support my local reproductive health center because it’s the only place I can receive compassionate and truly patient-centered care. They ask for my pronouns, create a judgment-free environment and practice very consent-based care. I always feel safe and have all the medical options or questions about health concerns or birth control types explained fully. It’s the only time I go to a doctor where I don’t feel rushed by them. I always leave thinking: I wish this was how every medical experience happened!”
- Crystal P., Somersworth
“I want women with few financial resources or private access to health care to have the same preventive care that I receive. This was particularly on my mind recently when I had a breast exam during a visit to my primary care provider. My visit was covered by my insurance. Many women only have access to this preventive care through the Equality Health Center.”
- Marti H., North Sutton
The petition was launched on November 13. Reproductive Equity Now collected signatures via organic organizing and online digital ads.
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