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Politics : Politics for Pros- moderated -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Lane3 who wrote (23050)	1/5/2004 4:13:15 PM
From: LindyBill	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 793718

Interesting that the South Dakota web site in question wasn't available. Must have had a glitch. It works now. Here is the article. Obviously the Reporter is clueless and bought the "Pro Choice" statements at face value. Since she is "Pro Choice" - all reporters are- she never questioned the POV. S.D. won't mention abortion-cancer studies on Web Maura Lerner Star Tribune Published 01/01/2004 South Dakota health officials have dropped plans to mention a possible link between breast cancer and abortion on an official state Web site, saying that Minnesota's Health Department has damaged its credibility by doing so. Doneen Hollingsworth, South Dakota's secretary of health, said she wanted to avoid the controversy that surfaced recently in Minnesota, where critics accused the Health Department of spreading misleading information that suggests abortion increases the risk of breast cancer. "That debate has had a damaging effect on the overall credibility of Minnesota's Web site," Hollingsworth wrote in a letter Tuesday to Planned Parenthood's South Dakota headquarters. In late September, the Minnesota Health Department changed its Web site references to abortion to say that some studies have linked abortion with an increased risk of breast cancer, while others have not, and that more study might be needed. Critics say the statement is misleading because a national panel of experts convened by the National Cancer Institute reviewed all the existing studies and concluded in February that there is no evidence of an increased risk. Hollingsworth wrote that she was concerned "that a similar controversy in South Dakota would diminish the integrity and credibility of our own Web site." She added that South Dakota Gov. Mike Rounds, a Republican who opposes abortion, "shared this concern and has directed that there be no reference to breast cancer on this site." The state's new Web site on abortion and pregnancy, which debuts today, can be found at state.sd.us. "What we're seeing here is evidence of a national decline in the reputation of Minnesota's Health Department information," said Dr. Steve Miles, a medical professor and ethicist at the University of Minnesota. He said Minnesota officials "decided to risk the integrity and reputation of our Health Department for the sake of that political agenda. It's too high of a price to pay. The Web site should come down." Minnesota Health Commissioner Dianne Mandernach has defended the state's Web information on abortion as evenhanded. She could not be reached for comment Wednesday. But last week, Gov. Tim Pawlenty asked her to meet with the Minnesota Medical Association after it raised concerns about the accuracy of the information. She has said that it was developed after consultations with Pawlenty, who opposes abortion, and the state's leading advocacy group against abortion, Minnesota Concerned Citizens for Life. Planned Parenthood officials said they hoped the South Dakota decision would send a message to Minnesota. "I think it's pretty clear that the Health Department cannot function once it loses credibility with the public," said Sarah Stoesz, president of Planned Parenthood of Minnesota and South Dakota. "I think that South Dakota has recognized this and has made the correct decision to base its Web site on science and not on ideology." Kate Looby, state director for Planned Parenthood in South Dakota, said health officials in her state had been considering language identical to Minnesota's. "We're just glad that the input from the experience of the Minnesota Web site weighed in on that and that they made the right decision," she said. Hollingsworth did not return a phone call from the Star Tribune. But Leslee Unruh, an abortion opponent in Sioux Falls, S.D., who wants the breast-cancer link included in the Web site, said the debate in South Dakota is far from over. "I think it is a crime to ignore medical facts and statistics that hurt women," she said. "There's going to be extreme pressure put on the governor, I can guarantee that." Maura Lerner is at >mlerner@startribune.com. © Copyright 2004 Star Tribune. All rights reserved. startribune.com