Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Planned Parenthood Analysis Alleges Manipulation, Editing Of Covert Videos
The Associated Press: Planned Parenthood Alleges 'Smear' In Letter To Congress
Planned Parenthood Federation of America defended its practices Thursday in a lengthy letter to congressional leaders and included a report by experts it hired who found undercover videos of officials discussing fetal tissue for research were heavily altered by anti-abortion activists. The report supports the organization's claims that the secretly recorded videos were distorted to misrepresent conversations employees had with anti-abortion activists posing as biomedical company employees interested in buying fetal tissue, Planned Parenthood said. (Melley, 8/27)
The New York Times: Planned Parenthood Videos Were Altered, Analysis Finds
Planned Parenthood on Thursday gave congressional leaders and a committee that is investigating allegations of criminality at its clinics an analysis it commissioned concluding that “manipulation” of undercover videos by abortion opponents make those recordings unreliable for any official inquiry. “A thorough review of these videos in consultation with qualified experts found that they do not present a complete or accurate record of the events they purport to depict,” the analysis of a private research company said. (Calmes, 8/27)
The Wall Street Journal: Dueling Assessments Of Planned Parenthood Videos
The [Planned Parenthood ] letter and analysis are the organization’s first concerted response to investigations by federal lawmakers following the release of eight videos by the Center for Medical Progress, another antiabortion group. Americans United for Life on Thursday also sent letters to congressional leaders, saying its lawyers had reviewed seven unedited videos, concluding that they raise probable cause that Planned Parenthood violated at least six federal laws. (Armour, 8/27)
The Washington Post: Videos Deceptively Edited, Planned Parenthood Tells Congress
The letter, [written by the organization’s president, Cecile Richards] was accompanied by a 10-page report commissioned by Planned Parenthood and penned by an independent investigator, former Wall Street Journal reporter Glenn Simpson. Through his firm Fusion GPS, Simpson enlisted experts who analyzed both the short, highly produced videos publicized by the antiabortion group, as well as hours of “full” footage the group posted on YouTube. The implication is that the longer footage was unedited. But Simpson said he found significant gaps. (Somashekhar, 8/27)
Politico: Report For Planned Parenthood Finds Sting Videos Manipulated
Planned Parenthood also told lawmakers that only two of the 59 Planned Parenthood affiliates are currently involved in fetal tissue research — and that there is no evidence any affiliate has broken federal or state laws. “The attacks on us have the intended purpose of making it appear that fetal tissue research is an enormous focus of Planned Parenthood,” Cecile Richards, the president of Planned Parenthood Federation of America, wrote in a letter to House Speaker John Boehner and Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Minority Leader Harry Reid. “But the simple fact is that 99 percent of our health centers have no involvement in this work.” (Haberkorn, 8/27)
The Hill: Planned Parenthood To House, Senate Leaders: Videos Manipulated
The documents offer the closest look so far at how Planned Parenthood has fared since it came under attack from the makers of the videos. It also offers new details about the tissue program’s history, such as the “modest reimbursement” of $60 per tissue specimen that Planned Parenthood’s California provider receives from a tissue procurement company. It also says that Planned Parenthood has launched an internal review of its "policies and practices" surrounding the program. The measures are part of an effort to pressure supporters on Capitol Hill to “intervene in what is clearly an unnecessary and distracting process,” Planned Parenthood Executive Vice President Dawn Laguens told reporters Thursday. (Ferris, 8/27)
CNN: In Report To Congress, Planned Parenthood Says Videos Are Deceptive
At the time of the examination, CMP had released five videos, Planned Parenthood said. The report said experts found that there were at least 42 splices where content is cut and edited together to create the appearance of seamless conversations. "In some cases, these splices completely change the meaning of statements," the report said. "Phrases on the video were isolated and removed, stringing together unrelated sentences to change the meaning." (Scott, 8/27)
NPR: Planned Parenthood Fights Back
The videos, which were released by the anti-abortion activist group Center for Medical Progress, have prompted calls for congressional investigations, which are expected to begin next month. There have also been public protests over the weekend around the country, both condemning and defending Planned Parenthood. (Kelly, 8/27)
The Associated Press: Q&A: Questions, Answers In Planned Parenthood Controversy
[Planned Parenthood] sent a letter Thursday to congressional leaders and included a report by experts it hired who found that undercover videos of its officials were heavily altered by anti-abortion activists. The move was the latest development in a heated dispute that has riled people on both sides of the abortion debate. The videos were produced by a California-based anti-abortion group called the Center for Medical Progress, which began releasing them in July. Here are answers to some of the questions at the heart of the controversy. (Melley, 8/28)
Meanwhile, news outlets also offer some related Planned Parenthood articles.
Bloomberg: Planned Parenthood Restrictions Could Be Kept Off Funding Bill
Republican leaders in Congress are considering a pledge to hold a separate vote on defunding Planned Parenthood as a way to keep the issue from derailing legislation to keep the government running, said congressional aides with knowledge of the discussions. In private discussions, the leaders are looking at using reconciliation procedures to let a Planned Parenthood bill come up for a filibuster-proof Senate vote, the aides said. (Rowley, 8/28)
New Orleans Times-Picayune: Bobby Jindal's Administration Says Planned Parenthood Can't Sue Over Canceled Medicaid Contract
If Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast wants its Medicaid contract restored, it should appeal to the federal government for intervention -- not file a lawsuit in federal court, according to Gov. Bobby Jindal's administration. The argument is part of the administration's response to Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast's lawsuit filed Tuesday (Aug. 25) that seeks to have the court issue a temporary restraining order to keep Jindal from canceling its Medicaid contract. The organization, which does not perform abortions in Louisiana, says more than 5,000 patients will lose access to care such as cancer and sexually transmitted infection screenings if the contract is canceled. (Litten, 8/27)
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch: Report Claims Missouri Did Not Receive Required Lab Reports On Fetal Tissue
A Brentwood, Mo.-based pathology lab failed to send the state an unknown number of reports on fetal tissue from the St. Louis Planned Parenthood clinic, a state inspection report says. State officials said this week they had no idea how long the tissue exam reports weren't filed, even though state law requires that a pathology lab contracted by Planned Parenthood send reports to the Department of Health and Senior Services. (Stuckey and Liss, 8/27)
