Homeless in LA

Here is where I remind you that this is MY PERSONAL VIEW, and that you are oh, so welcome to comment.  Abortion is one of the few topics EVERYONE has an oppinion on and I remember seeing a bumper sticker on Merry’s jeep when I was in High school that said “An Aborted Baby Will Never Have a Nice Day” with a smiley face on it.

Often, being homeless means being cut off from health care. It means that you get infections that go untreated and neglect basic physical health care and almost never see a gynecologist. When I worked on Skid Row in LA I was thrilled at the rare occasions I could connect someone with a Gyno appt at The Salvation Army Women’s Clinic.

Being Homeless does not mean you are sexless. All the basic urges and needs remain intact. More importantly: women who are poor or homeless are more likely to turn to the sex-trade than other demographics.

Unless you think the idea of poor homeless hookers having babies is a reasonable alternative to offering them birth control and abortions…I don’t see what the drama is.

Of course, not all poor women are homeless, nor are they hookers, but they do deserve the right to see specialists in women’s health and to be able to protect their health via condoms, Nor-Plant, The Pill, IUD’s, and pap-smears, just like their counter-parts with private health insurance have access to.

Women who go to Planned Parenthood are taking the first basic steps to caring for themselves. I have gone to Planned Parenthood for birth control and  had pelvic exams there and they have always asked about and encouraged me to see a general practitioner. 

for the record: Planned Parenthood also provides  general health care services including

• anemia testing
• cholesterol screening
• diabetes screening
• employment and sports physicals
• flu vaccination
• high blood pressure screening
• physical exams
• pregnancy planning services
• smoking cessation
• tetanus vaccination
• thyroid screening

Men’s Health Services include :

• checkups for reproductive or sexual health problems
• colon cancer screening
• erectile dysfunction services, including education, exams, treatment, and referral
• jock itch exam and treatment
• male infertility screening and referral
• premature ejaculation services, including education, exams, treatment, and referral
• routine physical exams
• testicular cancer screenings
• prostate cancer screenings
• urinary tract infections testing and treatment
• vasectomy

Planned Parenthood also runs Street Smart, a two-year HIV prevention program for at risk youth. Street Smart is recognized by the Center for Disease Control and the Diffusion of Effective Behavioral Interventions (DEBI) as a program that reduces substance use and the number of unprotected sexual acts among homeless youth, thereby reducing the risk of HIV.

Information on Planned Parenthood is from their web site: www.plannedparenthood.org

the initial article that made me want to write this is : http://www.lifenews.com/state3718.html