Planned Parenthood is firing back at the anti-abortion group that released an undercover video exposé Tuesday, arguing it “grossly mischaracterizes” the issue of fetal tissue donations.
Under fire from a long list of conservatives, Planned Parenthood Action Fund released 11 pages of attack points against the founder of the group that published the video, the Center for Medical Progress.
In the now-viral video, a high-level Planned Parenthood official is heard describing the transfer and demand for aborted fetal tissue — including livers, lungs and “intact hearts.”
The group’s second statement on the video, which was provided to The Hill on Tuesday, confirms it is Deborah Nucatela, senior director of medical services, who appears in the video, but fiercely disputes that the conversation was about selling body parts.
“Deborah Nucatela was speculating on the range of reimbursement that patients can receive after stating they wish to donate any tissue after a procedure,” the organization wrote in a report prepared by its PR firm.
“The promotional video mischaracterizing Planned Parenthood’s mission and services is made by a long time anti-abortion activist that has used deceptive and unethical video editing, and that has created a fake medical website as well as a fake human tissue website that purports to provide services to stem cell researchers,” the group wrote in a two-page statement.
It also provided several pages of background research about the organization’s use of donated fetal tissue, which it describes as “humanitarian undertaking that hold the potential to cure disease, save lives, and ameliorate suffering.”
The statement explains that Planned Parenthood affiliates can legally receive reimbursement from a tissue donation procedure for the “additional expenses related tissue donation, which can vary based on individual circumstance,” but it does not go to staff members or providers.
The nine-minute video, which has nearly 50,000 views on YouTube, has prompted at least one state to launch an investigation into Planned Parenthood. Several prominent Republicans, including Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), have also condemned the organization’s practices.
