Reproductive health group Planned Parenthood is facing trouble with its funders after a major scandal triggered by undercover videos that surfaced online showing its top officials negotiating the price for the sale of body parts from aborted babies.
Representatives of three big companies—Coca-Cola, Ford Motor Co. and Xerox—have already distanced themselves from the embattled group, saying they were erroneously listed as among the 41 corporate donors on Planned Parenthood's website.
The three companies also requested that they no longer be identified as Planned Parenthood donors.
As a result, the pro-reproductive health organisation was forced to take down the "Donations" page of its website listing companies that previously provided it matching direct-giving or a matching gifts programme.
With the organisation facing mounting criticism and investigation from Congress, more funders are expected to dissociate themselves.
Planned Parenthood still has 38 remaining corporate donors, including tech giants, banks, and even medical organisations.
These funders are: Adobe, American Cancer Society, American Express, AT&T, Avon, Bank of America, Bath & Body Works, Ben & Jerry's, Clorox, Converse, Deutsche Bank, Dockers, Energizer, Expedia, ExxonMobil, Fannie Mae, Groupon, Intuit, Johnson & Johnson, La Senza, Levi Strauss, Liberty Mutual, Macy's, March of Dimes, Microsoft, Morgan Stanley, Nike, Oracle, PepsiCo, Pfizer, Progressive, Starbucks, Susan G. Komen, Tostitos, Unilever, United Way, Verizon and Wells Fargo.
In a related development, Republican lawmakers are also calling on leaders of the House of Representatives to move to defund Planned Parenthood for a year while the congressional investigation on allegations of profiting from the sale of body parts of aborted babies is ongoing.
The proposal, initiated by Tennessee Rep. Diane Black, has already garnered the support of 124 other lawmakers.
"There is no excuse when you have evidence like this. It's time to move forward. It's not time to back off. I would be very disappointed if we gave in to the abortion industry in this," said Kansas Rep. Tim Huelskamp, a supporter of the proposal to defund Planned Parenthood.
