Is He Nuts?

The Bush administration has appointed Dr. Eric Keroack, an obstetrician-gynecologist, as the new Chief of Family Planning programs at the Department of Health and Human Services. That means, this former medical director for a large non-profit that supports abstinence, adoption, and compassionate support for pregnant women and girls in crisis will administer the $283 million in family-planning grants that have gone to contraception clinics serving low-income people.

Family planning advocates are screaming "foul" as they themselves are already trying to eliminate federal abstinence, marriage initiative and faith-based funding.

Is President Bush "dramatically out of step with the nation's priorities" as the president of Planned Parenthood charges? Is he "not going to compromise on his principles" as a White House spokesperson claims? Or is he "sly as a fox" making a simple move that will force an indepth look at a 36 year family planning program that has enjoyed limited oversight?

I think the administration is determined to force discussion, debate and study to resolve trends that are detrimental to our country. Bush is remaining consistent with his clearly promoted stance on teen sexual activity, marriage and family, and HIV/AIDS.

I can only hope that Dr. Keroack is up to the challenge of acting under a microscope in a hostile environment. His past co-workers hint that birth control is not an issue for him; the issue might be using it for enabling unwed sex instead of planning a family. One man is not going to derail funding but this program needs to meet the same standards as abstinence funding to level the "playing field" and determine the true strengths and weaknesses of each.

Talking together shouldn't be a bad thing even if someone has to force it to happen. Hopefully, Dr. Keroack can articulate that doubling his department's funding, as advocated by family planning advocates, is an extremely expensive way to stop pregnancies if women continue the sex that got them pregnant in the first place--1/3 of fertile, sexually active women get pregnant--the ratio stays the same whether they are contracepting or not. Hormonal contraceptives are still connected to female cancers so wary women are looking for alternatives. The government should as well.