Latinas need assistance and medical care when they suspect they are pregnant, have contracted an STD, or developed breast or cervical cancer.   This is a public health issue.

 Hispanic women have a higher rate of teen pregnancy.  They are two times more likely to be diagnosed with cervical cancer, and are less likely than other groups to seek a mammogram and pap smears.

 To compound these health issues, 40 percent of Hispanic women do not have medical insurance and 12 percent rely on Medicaid for treatment.

 So the systemic attack by members of Congress against Planned Parenthood, one of the organizations that provide comprehensive services for low-income women, is also an attack on the Hispanic community.

 In 2009 alone, 620,000 young Latinas sought help from Planned Parenthood (23 percent of the total number of patients) to deal with health problems.

 Yet, on the recent debate on the budget deficit, Republicans shamefully minimized the well-being of Latinas.  They used the debate on spending cuts to demand a bar on federal funds for Planned Parenthood.  They argue that public funds should not cover abortions – when, in fact, less than 5 percent of all Planned Parenthood services are used for this purpose.

 President Obama persuaded the Republicans to drop the outrageous proposal.  However, the battle to save medical care for low-income women is far from over as a number of legislative proposals at the federal and state level threaten to modify Medicaid, thereby limiting access to reproductive health services.

 With the presidential election fast approaching, Latino voters should take notes on who is fighting for the needs of our community – and who would prefer to deny services to Latinas and send them toward backroom abortions.