Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc. HQ

Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA) works to ensure that all individuals have the right, and the means, to make their own informed decisions regarding sexual and reproductive health and childbearing. We seek a world where there is universal access to sexual and reproductive health care services and education, erasing health care disparities and vastly reducing rates of unintended pregnancy, sexually transmitted infections, and other poor health outcomes.

To achieve this goal, PPFA’s work encompasses two major program areas: advocacy and service delivery. On the advocacy front, we work to shape a legal and policy climate that promotes access to services and education at the state and federal levels. This includes fighting off efforts to restrict access to abortion and birth control as well as developing and advancing legislation and policies that actually expand access to quality care and comprehensive sex education. In the service delivery area, we work with our nationwide network of affiliates to ensure that high quality, affordable services are available in communities nationwide, particularly for low-income women and young people. In addition to strengthening service delivery on the ground at Planned Parenthood health centers, PPFA also spearheads several programs that use technology in innovative ways to reach women and young people where they are — overcoming barriers of time, distance, and cost that often prevent them from obtaining the care they need.

In our advocacy work, PPFA employs several complementary strategies to demonstrate strong public support on our issues. We work to build and organize a powerful grassroots base by reaching out to sign up supporters and providing them with ample opportunities to stay engaged and take action — on the phone, online, via social media, and in person at rallies and other events. To ensure that diverse voices are heard — including those most impacted by efforts to weaken women’s health care — PPFA has created special initiatives to engage young people, our patients, and the Latino community. We often complement our grassroots strategies in multilayered campaigns that also include educating policymakers as well as outreach to the media to generate coverage and further increase the visibility of our issues. And should we be unable to prevent harmful legislation from becoming law, PPFA files litigation, whenever appropriate, to preserve women’s access to services.

To ensure the delivery of quality, affordable care at Planned Parenthood health centers, PPFA provides technical assistance and training to our affiliates across the country. These efforts focus on a variety of areas: the development of health information technologies, such as electronic health records; the introduction of new services, products, and delivery models, including online health services and telemedicine; strengthening systems and procedures to improve security and protect patients and staff from anti-choice harassment and violence; and improving business operations to ensure that affiliates are operating their health centers as efficiently as possible. One of our top priorities has been ensuring that our affiliates are well prepared for the changes brought about by the Affordable Care Act, and ready to serve the many more women who are newly eligible for coverage.

To expand access to comprehensive sex education, PPFA conducts research and develops programs and tools that use technology in innovative ways to reach young people. We operate a Chat/Text service that answers users’ most pressing sexual health questions in real time. We have also developed a series of interactive digital education tools for smart phones, designed to foster learning and healthy behaviors among young people.

Alone among major women’s health organizations, Planned Parenthood is both an advocate and provider. As the national organization for Planned Parenthood, PPFA works with affiliates providing services to some three million women and men annually, at more than 700 health centers throughout the U.S. We serve a highly diverse patient population: nearly a quarter are Latina and 15 percent are African American; more than 60 percent report incomes at or below the federal poverty level. As an organization with a nearly 100-year history, Planned Parenthood has served generations of women. In fact, one in five women in the U.S. has visited a Planned Parenthood health center at least once in her life.

This history of service gives us unparalleled credibility in the fight for women’s health; it has also earned us a base of passionate supporters who have come to know us as their trusted local provider. Today PPFA counts more than seven million supporters on our lists. We mobilize these individuals through a sophisticated nationwide public affairs infrastructure that includes highly trained staff at our affiliates as well as the latest organizing technologies designed to help us target, reach, and engage our supporters as quickly and effectively as possible.

PPFA has made youth organizing a top priority and has launched Planned Parenthood Generation to intensify our engagement of Millenials. The program provides training and hands-on organizing experience to build a new generation of movement leaders. We reach out to high school students as well as college-aged youth: there are now more than 250 groups supporting Planned Parenthood on college campuses around the country.

In our organizing and litigation PPFA often works closely with our fellow members of the reproductive rights and justice coalition and with many other organizations working on a variety of issues within the wider progressive community. We are committed to building strong partnerships with organizations serving communities of color and have prioritized outreach to groups and coalitions working in the areas of HIV/AIDS, racial justice, voting rights, LGBT rights, and immigration reform.

Planned Parenthood is also the nation’s largest provider of sex education, which allows us to draw on significant resources and expertise in this area as we seek new ways to use technology to deliver education more effectively.

Our efforts to sustain and expand the delivery of high-quality, affordable health care at our affiliates is spearheaded by our Health Services Support Division, which is staffed by seasoned experts in health center management, health information technology, and business operations. Many of them have years of experience working in health center operations at Planned Parenthood affiliates.

In our aim to continue to provide trusted community health care, this past year our nationwide network of affiliates saw 2.4 million unique patients through over 4 million visits to Planned Parenthood health centers. 1.7 Million of these visits were appointments booked through our online platform. To further our mission of informing and educating, our affiliate-lead education programs saw participation from over 620 thousand individuals in this past year. We held over 48 thousand advocacy events and to continue our mission to advocate for public policies that protect and expand reproductive rights.
In the upcoming year we hope to see 2 million patients, experience 3.7 million visits, and continue our education and advocacy efforts to help people live full, healthy lives — no matter your income, insurance, gender identity, sexual orientation, race, or immigration status.