(RNN) – The Susan G. Komen foundation announced Friday it had reversed its decision to cut funding to Planned Parenthood after loud public backlash led to the resignation of several top executives.
"We want to apologize for recent decisions that cast doubt upon our commitment to our mission of saving women's lives," the organization wrote on its Twitter feed Friday.
The Komen foundation had planned to drop breast cancer screenings at Planned Parenthood, a group of women's health clinics that treat the medically under-served. Planned Parenthood said Tuesday the decision was politically motivated.
[Read the statement from the Susan G. Komen foundation.]
Komen officials claimed to have dropped the funding because of new, more stringent requirements as to who can receive funding, including eliminating funding for any organization under investigation.
Friday, the organization clarified its position.
"We will amend the criteria to make clear that disqualifying investigations must be criminal and conclusive in nature and not political," according to Komen's Twitter feed Friday.
The House oversight and investigations subcommittee began an investigation into Planned Parenthood's funding in the fall that put the organization under pressure. Planned Parenthood has maintained that the investigation also is politically motivated.
Planned Parenthood released a statement on their website Friday stating that they are "grateful that the Komen Foundation has clarified its grantmaking criteria" and they look forward to helping women in underserved communities.
"In recent weeks, the treasured relationship between the Susan G. Komen for the Cure Foundation and Planned Parenthood has been challenged, and we are now heartened that we can continue to work in partnership toward our shared commitment to breast health for the most underserved women," said Cecile Richards of Planned Parenthood Federation of America.
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-CA, praised the women who participated in the backlashed, posting this message on her Twitter feed:
"When women speak out, women win."
Three execs resign
The Komen organization is best known for its high profile pink-ribbon campaign that raises awareness and generates money for breast cancer research. Komen typically grants about $680,000 in funding to Planned Parenthood, which provides sexual and reproductive health care, including breast exams and birth control, to low-income women.
Planned Parenthood says it has provided more than 4 million breast exams nationwide. The funding from Komen paid for 170,000 of those exams.
By Thursday evening, three Komen executives had resigned or threatened to resign in protest of the funding cuts, including:
> Deb Anthony, executive director of Komen's Los Angeles County chapter
> Mollie Williams, top health official
> Dr. Kathy Plesser, a Manhattan radiologist on the board of Susan G. Komen for the Cure's New York chapter, who said she would resign Thursday evening unless funding was restored.
AP reported that 26 U.S. senators - all of them Democrats save for independent Bernie Sanders of Vermont - joined in a petition to ask Komen to reconsider its decision to drop the funding.
"It would be tragic if any woman — let alone thousands of women — lost access to these potentially lifesaving screenings because of a politically motivated attack," the petition stated.
Komen took heavy criticism from the public and Planned Parenthood, which claimed Komen bucked under political pressure from anti-abortion advocates who oppose Planned Parenthood's practice of providing abortions.
The organization has been targeted by anti-abortion groups and far right evangelical Christians. Lifeway Christian Resources pulled Komen's cancer-awareness Bible that raised money for the charity because of ties to Planned Parenthood.
Williams explained in a statement to The Atlantic why she was displeased by the funding cuts.
"I have dedicated my career to fighting for the rights of the marginalized and under-served," Williams said in the statement. "And I believe it would be a mistake for any organization to bow to political pressure and compromise its mission."
Funds pour in
Komen said in a statement Thursday it withdrew the funding because of new, more stringent regulations as to who is eligible for grants.
"We are dismayed and extremely disappointed that actions we have taken to strengthen our granting process have been widely mischaracterized. It is necessary to set the record straight," the statement read.
The backlash spurred private donations to pour in to Planned Parenthood on Wednesday and Thursday.
The Associated Press reported the group received more than $400,000 from 6,000 donors in the 24 hours since the news broke.
New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg pledged to match every new donation, dollar for dollar, to Planned Parenthood up to $250,000 out of his own pocket.
Other reports state the organization had not only replaced all of the $680,000 in funds, but that it had raised $1 million in the wake of the controversey.
Copyright 2012 Raycom News Network. All rights reserved.
(RNN) – Susan G. Komen has announced that they reversed their decision to cut funding to Planned Parenthood, according to CNN.
This decision comes after top officials with the Susan G. Komen for the Cure foundation resigned in protest after the organization's controversial decision Wednesday to drop funding for Planned Parenthood.
Planned Parenthood President Cecile Richards (Source: CNN)
Planned Parenthood says it has provided 4 million breast exams nationwide. (Source: CNN)
Lifeway Christian Resources pulled Komen's cancer-awareness bible that raised money for the charity because of ties to Planned Parenthood. (Source: WSMV/CNN)
New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg pledged $250,000 in matching funds out of his own pocket in support of Planned Parenthood. (Source: CNN)
Was the Susan G. Komen foundation wrong to eliminate funding to Planned Parenthood clinics?
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