Planned Parenthood claims to stand for all of women’s reproductive choices, but more than once the nation’s largest abortion provider has been accused of mistreating its pregnant employees. It seems that the recently fired and now pregnant former president is no exception, as Planned Parenthood appears to be trying to bully Leana Wen into silence.
The New York Times has reported that the abortion corporation is withholding Wen’s health insurance and severance pay unless she signs a confidentiality agreement, an action Wen has rightly called “unjust” and “unethical.” Planned Parenthood’s attempt to violate the terms of Wen’s employment contract has proven once again that they are not a women’s healthcare organization, but a corporation that values abortion above all else.
This attempt to enforce a gag rule on Wen comes with an ironic twist. At the same time, Planned Parenthood has alleged that the Trump Administration’s new Title X rules have placed a gag rule upon them. Planned Parenthood recently chose to withdraw from the federal program rather than separate their healthcare services from their abortion business, and they had to suffer the loss of $60 million in taxpayer dollars as a consequence. The decision to prioritize abortion over healthcare in this case is similar to the reasons surrounding Wen’s departure from Planned Parenthood. She had attempted to shift the organization’s focus away from abortion and toward healthcare, and that led to her firing.
Wen has since revealed that within the national staff and board members at Planned Parenthood “is a vocal minority who prefer a stridently political, abortion-first philosophy.” In a direct violation of their contractual obligations, Planned Parenthood is attempting to take “away [Wen’s] voice as a public health expert” by forcing her to sign a gag clause, suppressing any future statements from the former president that would expose Planned Parenthood’s abortion-minded agenda. Through their senior vice president of communications, Melanie Newman, the abortion provider has attempted to further dismiss Wen’s claims by labeling them as “unfortunate, saddening, and simply untrue.”
Claiming that the attorneys representing the board have treated Wen “amicably,” Newman has insisted that attempts are being made to reach “a suitable resolution regarding [Wen’s] exit package.” However, Wen is not the first Planned Parenthood president to be fired for attempting to shift the corporation’s focus away from abortion. Pamela J. Maraldo was forced to resign years ago when the board feared Maraldo was “more interested in managed care than in being Planned Parenthood.” Wen is also not the first pregnant employee that Planned Parenthood has treated abysmally.
An exposé in The New York Times revealed that the management of some Planned Parenthood clinics views “accommodating expecting mothers as expensive and inconvenient. Others were unsympathetic to workers seeking special treatment.” Since 2013, dozens of lawsuits have been filed against Planned Parenthood clinics in federal and state courts, accusing managers of “denying workers rest periods, lunch breaks or overtime pay, or retaliating against them for taking medical leave.”
Other reports revealed cases where managers denied pregnant staffers requests for frequent breaks, even if the request was backed up by a doctor’s note. Details of other reported incidents involved staff members being fired weeks after giving birth, or being dismissed the day after returning from maternity leave. Now, Planned Parenthood is refusing to pay for a pregnant Wen’s health insurance, even though their abrupt termination of her employment requires them to do so.
With their former president becoming the latest victim of their reported pregnancy discrimination, Planned Parenthood has proven once again that abortion is their main priority. While she has still maintained her pro-abortion position, the treatment Wen has received has validated reports of Planned Parenthood’s unethical behavior. Their attempt to blackmail Wen into silence has caused Planned Parenthood to unwittingly reveal the pro-life movement has been correct about them all along.
Planned Parenthood is not an organization that supports women throughout all of their pregnancy decisions, but an abortion corporation that profits from the deaths of over 300,000 unborn babies a year.
Samantha Kamman covers abortion for Lone Conservative.com
