St. Hilaire on Hot Seat Over Planned Parenthood Vote

A few weeks ago, the Executive Council, a political body that approves all state contracts over $10,000, rejected a $1.8 million social service contract for Planned Parenthood, effectively defunding six of the nonprofit’s health centers in New Hampshire.

Planned Parenthood of Northern New England President and CEO Steve Trombley termed the effects of the Executive Council's 3-2 vote "devastating" and "reckless," in a statement last week. He indicated that Planned Parenthood serves 16,000 New Hampshire women and families in those health centers.

In reaction to the rejected contract, Planned Parenthood has started an outreach campaign, calling on its supporters to contact the councilors, asking them to renew the contract. A post on the Planned Parenthood website claims that “150 women have been denied access to essential services because of the Executive Council’s rash decision.” The rejected contract has also garnered national attention, with pro-life organizations cheering the decision and pro-choice groups angered by it.

Executive Councilor Dan St. Hilaire of Concord, one of the three votes rejecting the contract, said he voted against it because federal law states that no taxpayer money can be used to fund abortions.

While Planned Parenthood claims that none of the $1.8 million would be used for abortions, St. Hilaire made a counter-claim that a system was set up whereby the state was funding every other part of the organization to assist women in getting abortions, from counseling, to power in the buildings, and other expenses.

Since his vote, St. Hilaire has received calls from both sides of the issue.

“It’s created a lot of interest and concern on all sides,” he said.

St. Hilaire said he met with Planned Parenthood after the vote in an effort to find “common ground.” He made suggestions in the meeting on how the organization could do business differently.

According to St. Hilaire, Planned Parenthood officials admitted that some of his suggestions were in place in Texas, but chose to reject the changes in New Hampshire. After that, the campaign targeting his vote started, he said.

One other issue St. Hilaire raised was the fact that the top three executives with the organization make more than $450,000, money he said could be spent on services the organization said it didn’t have money for.

“Clearly, they have money to provide services,” he said.

St. Hilaire, who is pro-life, said as an attorney, he knows that abortion is legal in the state. But, at the same time, taxpayer funds are not to be used to fund abortions. St. Hilaire added that the Planned Parenthood attacks that he wasn’t listening to “the people,” were false.

“No one (from Planned Parenthood) reached out to me about the issue,” he said. “The only calls I received were ones asking me to vote against it. I never got one call saying I should vote for it before the vote. So when people call me and say I wasn’t listening to the people, well, I was. Now, everyone is scrambling, at this point.”

The consequences

Jennifer Frizzell, a senior policy advisor with Planned Parenthood, said 68 percent of Planned Parenthood of Northern New England patients are at or below 150 percent of the federal poverty level and rely on contraception offered at little to no cost.

That, she said, means the vast majority of patients simply won't be able to afford birth control at a pharmacy cost of $50 to $90 a month, which is likely to cause an influx in unintended pregnancies and thus place a greater burden on state resources at a much higher cost.

"Ultimately, we think we have a proven and tested delivery model," said Frizzell. "Historically, New Hampshire has the lowest teen pregnancy rate in the country and we've been able, through education and outreach, to really positively affect public policy and health outcomes, and now that is at risk when 50 percent of the state's population has that access restricted until the contract is restored."

St. Hilaire, who is also an at-large Concord City Councilor, said residents of Concord and surrounding communities are already served by other organizations offering the same services. Most of the residents in his district – a swath of towns from one side of the state, through Concord, to the other side – are covered. St. Hilaire also said the Executive Council voted to approve other contracts offering similar services that Planned Parenthood was offering, without the abortion component

According to the Executive Council summary report of June 22, the Bureau of Population Health and Community Services, Maternal and Child Health Section, Family Planning, was authorized to fund nine other contracts with vendors around the state, totaling about $2.6 million.

Though Planned Parenthood has been targeted because it offers first-trimester abortions, Frizzell said only 3 percent of its services are dedicated to abortion, meaning the decision primarily affects the remaining 97 percent of care options offered. According to data provided by Planned Parenthood, 6,112 breast exams, 5,548 cervical cancer screenings and 18,858 STI tests were provided by the organization's Northern New England clinics in 2010, and 13,242 patients received contraceptive care.

In fact, Planned Parenthood indicates six of 10 patients visiting a Title X family planning center consider it their primary health care source.

Because legislative efforts to defund Planned Parenthood have failed nationwide and in New Hampshire, Frizzell said the Executive Council inappropriately, and perhaps unconstitutionally, used its authority over contract approval as a substitute for the bills and amendments rejected by those elected to govern New Hampshire.

The reality that the clinic's contract renewal has typically been a routine process for the 40 years prior to 2011 left Planned Parenthood officials scrambling to maintain its services due to having no immediate contingency plan in place.

The future

The political rumor mill being what it is in Concord, some have suggested that St. Hilaire’s vote against Planned Parenthood might be a lead up to a potential gubernatorial race in 2012.

St. Hilaire, who is often pigeonholed as a liberal Republican or RINO (“Republican in name only”) by some conservative activist leaders in the state, has caught the eye of some with this vote. When asked if it was a precursor to a potential race, St. Hilaire laughed and said, “No.”

“I’ve been pro-life forever … it’s what I believe in, it’s a matter of conscience,” he said. “So the same things people you say are surprised by my vote well, it’s because, if I try to help out people, I do that, it’s part of my upbringing. But you can’t separate certain things from who you are as a person. I’ve been taught to be charitable, to help people out, and to be pro-life.”

Planned Parenthood of Northern New England, said Frizzell, is currently exploring all avenues, including legal recourse, to have its contract renewed.

The Executive Council is scheduled to meet at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, July 13, at the New Hampshire Food Bank in Manchester.