Catholic Health Association and Planned Parenthood

Sister Carol Keehan, DC
President and CEO
Catholic Health Association


Dear Sister Carol Keehan,


Below is an excerpt from an admittedly prolife biased news source.

by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
December 10, 2008

"Pro-life advocates know Obama has chosen another abortion activist for a key position when Planned Parenthood issues a press release saying it is "excited" about the pick.

“We also applaud the appointment of Jeanne Lambrew," the abortion business said in a statement LifeNews.com obtained. "She is one of the leading health policy experts in the country, and someone who is an advocate for" abortion.

Planned Parenthood said Lambrew will make a good team with pro-abortion former Sen. Tom Daschle, who Obama selected as his Health and Human Services Secretary.

“We are confident that President-elect Barack Obama, incoming HHS Secretary Daschle, and Jeanne Lambrew will represent an administration committed to ensuring women’s access to" abortion, the group said.

"Planned Parenthood is excited about the opportunity of having true partners in the White House and HHS," it added."


It seems that you also share excitement for the appointment of Tom Daschle as HHS secretary, and Jeanne Lambrew as deputy director of a newly created White house office for health care reform as stated on the Catholic Health Alliance website : http://www.chausa.org/Pub/MainNav/Newsroom/NewsReleases/2008/r081211a.htm.

It's not looking good for you to be publicly represented as having alignment with Planned Parenthood regarding Obama's selection of people to oversee U.S. health care policy.

This is the link to the actual Cecile Richards statement showing excitement for the same two Obama choices which your statement
applauds. http://www.plannedparenthood.org/newsroom/politics-policy-issues/statement-cecile-richards-president-planned-parenthood-federation-america-applauding-nomination-23376.htm

Here is a google search which, on Dec 17, showed the already considerable linkage between your statement and that of Planned Parenthood.
http://www.google.com/search?q=planned+parenthood+daschle+lambrew+statement&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a

You might wish to address this public relations problem. I don't imagine that there can be much said to sway personal views IF they are really as stated in the CHA statement. However it might be useful to ask you to consider that many bishops are speaking of closing portions of Catholic health care facilities if Obama's FOCA is passed. Alternatively, if the Bishops lack such fortitude in leading us to follow Catholic teaching on Life issues, there is the consideration that large funding sources to the Catholic health care facilities will dry up if donors discover that health care professionals within the Catholic institutions are no longer able to practice in a way that shows respect for human life, and that patients cannot rely on such respect.

There has been considerable disparity between what actually happens at some Catholic health care institutions, and Catholic teaching on the sanctity of life. I don't think it's good PR, however, to blur the overall distinction between Catholic health care and Planned Parenthood itself.

God Bless!