Planned Parenthood tries to broaden its "market"

From Stephanie Simon in the WSJ (hat tip: Linda Christiansen)...

Another good reason to be upset with almost all of the Democratic AND Republican U.S. House and Senate members who have taken your money to give to Planned Parenthood.

Flush with cash, Planned Parenthood affiliates nationwide are aggressively expanding their reach, seeking to woo more affluent patients with a network of suburban clinics and huge new health centers that project a decidedly upscale image.

The nonprofit, which traces its roots to 1916, has long focused on providing birth control, sexual-health care and abortions to teens and low-income women. While those groups still make up the majority of Planned Parenthood's patients, executives say they are "rebranding" their clinics to appeal to women of means -- a move that opens new avenues for boosting revenue and, they hope, political clout.

Two elegant new health centers have been built, and at least five more are on the way; the largest, in Houston, will be 75,000 square feet. They feature touches such as muted lighting, hardwood floors and airy waiting rooms in colors selected by marketing experts -- as well as walls designed to withstand a car's impact should an antiabortion protest turn violent.

Planned Parenthood has also opened more than two dozen quick-service "express centers," many in suburban shopping malls. Some sell jewelry, candles, books and T-shirts, along with contraception....

Antiabortion groups point out that Planned Parenthood, the nation's largest abortion provider, reported a record $1 billion in annual revenue in its most recent financial report -- about a third of that coming from federal and state grants to care for low-income women. The nonprofit ended the year with a surplus of $115 million, or about 11% of its revenue, and net assets of $952 million.

"Why are we giving them so much money?" asked Jim Sedlak, vice president of the anti-abortion American Life League. "As they reach out to more and more affluent customers," he added, "that will bolster our argument that we shouldn't be giving them any government funds."...

[And] some of Planned Parenthood's political allies question the allocation of those resources.

Last spring, the nonprofit -- which has 882 clinics nationwide -- dropped its crusading mission statement setting out the rights of all individuals, no matter their income, to "reproductive self-determination." In its place, Planned Parenthood adopted a crisp pledge to "leverage strength through our affiliated structure to be the nation's most trusted provider of sexual and reproductive health care." Ms. Richards says the new statement implies expanded services for all -- she's especially eager to draw more male patients -- but some outsiders wonder why it no longer mentions affordability or access.

"This is not the Planned Parenthood we all grew up with... they now have more of a business approach, much more aggressive," said Amy Hagstrom Miller, who runs abortion clinics in Texas and Maryland.

Ms. Hagstrom Miller competes with Planned Parenthood for abortion patients -- and finds it deeply frustrating. She does not receive the government grants or tax-deductible donations that bolster Planned Parenthood, and says she can't match the non-profit's budget for advertising or clinic upgrades. She has carved her own niche by touting her care as more holistic -- and by charging $425 for a first-trimester surgery at her Austin clinic, compared with $475 at the local Planned Parenthood. (Both Ms. Hagstrom Miller and Planned Parenthood say they work out discounts and payment plans for the needy.)

"They're not unlike other big national chains," Ms. Hagstrom Miller said. "They put local independent businesses in a tough situation."...

Even as the total number of abortions in the U.S. has dropped, the number performed by Planned Parenthood has grown steadily, to nearly 290,000 a year....

Independent providers often consider Planned Parenthood a partner in the fight to preserve abortion rights, but they'd like to see the nonprofit focus more on expanding access for the destitute or for isolated rural residents....

The strategy draws new patients -- and revenue. In Illinois, for instance, Planned Parenthood officials say they take a loss of nearly $1 on each packet of birth-control pills distributed to poor women under the federal Title X program, which funds reproductive care. But the group makes a profit of nearly $22 on each month of pills sold to an adult who can afford to pay full price out of pocket....

Their payments can then be used to subsidize other operations -- health care for the poor, sex education for teens, or political activism....

The new strategy is also designed to protect Planned Parenthood from any cutbacks in government funding while strengthening its ability to pursue its political agenda....

Nationally, Planned Parenthood's political-action arm plans to raise $10 million to influence the fall campaign. Under federal tax law, the health-care wing of Planned Parenthood cannot support political candidates but can mobilize voters and advocate on issues such as abortion rights and sex education in schools.

To encourage the new wave of patients to join the cause, an express center in Parker, Colo., sells political buttons next to the condoms and sets out invitations to activism by the magazine rack. A 52,000-square-foot center opening this summer in Denver uses about 20% of its space for health care; roughly 40% is for meetings, including political work....