Planned Parenthood President Cecile Richards Talks Healthcare At Madison Coffee Shop

Wisconsin U.S. senate candidate Russ Feingold told a group of women in Madison on Wednesday that they have to be on the offense, not just play defense on issues that affect them.

The democratic challenger to Republican Sen. Ron Johnson said women need to guard access to health care and fight for family leave and pay equity.

Feingold and the national president of Planned Parenthood, Cecile Richards, spoke to women Wednesday morning at Madison coffee shop Ground Zero Coffee. She appeared at the coffee shop as president of Planned Parenthood Action Fund, the lobbying arm of Planned Parenthood.

During the informal conversation, Richards said strides have been made in women’s healthcare, including birth control coverage and gender equity in the cost of health insurance thanks to the Affordable Care Act.

“Women now don’t have to pay more for health insurance than men,” Richards said. “Gender rating is illegal, which is incredible.”

As for the covering the cost of birth control, “It doesn’t seem like a radical idea, but it has taken this long to get there, and in fact the first year alone women in America saved $1.4 billion on birth control pills. This is real money,” Richards said.

Planned Parenthood, a women’s health provider, has been under constant assault by Republicans like Johnson, Feingold said.

“He was even part of the team that was willing to shut down the government of the United States of America in order to go after Planned Parenthood,” Feingold said.

Last year, Johnson co-sponsored an unsuccessful bill to cut off funding for Planned Parenthood and redirect that money to other women’s health providers. The bill was in response to controversial undercover videos released by an anti-abortion group. The heavily-edited videos appeared to show Planned Parenthood officials discussing the illegal sale of fetal tissue.