PPRM Provides Affordable Healthcare for Denver Gay Men

Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains provides services for gay men in Denver and throughout Colorado including STD Testing and Treatment, HIV Testing and Education, Prostate and Testicular Cancer Screenings, and Education and Referrals.

Affordable healthcare for gay men from Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains!

Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains provides services for gay men including STD Testing and Treatment, HIV Testing and Education, Prostate and Testicular Cancer Screenings, and Education and Referrals.

Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains - affordable, friendly healthcare for gay men

Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains provides services for gay men including STD Testing and Treatment, HIV Testing and Education, Prostate and Testicular Cancer Screenings, and Education and Referrals.

Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains provides affordable healthcare for gay men

Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains provides services for gay men including STD Testing and Treatment, HIV Testing and Education, Prostate and Testicular Cancer Screenings, and Education and Referrals.

Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains: Good for gay guys!

Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains provides services for gay men including STD Testing and Treatment, HIV Testing and Education, Prostate and Testicular Cancer Screenings, and Education and Referrals.

Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains - a health resource for the gay community

Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains provides services for gay men including STD Testing and Treatment, HIV Testing and Education, Prostate and Testicular Cancer Screenings, and Education and Referrals.

Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains is for Gay Men, Too!

Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains provides services for gay men including STD Testing and Treatment, HIV Testing and Education, Prostate and Testicular Cancer Screenings, and Education and Referrals.

Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains: Find out what they can do for you

Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains provides services for gay men including STD Testing and Treatment, HIV Testing and Education, Prostate and Testicular Cancer Screenings, and Education and Referrals.

Planned Parenthood expands breast health detection efforts

As someone who recently had breast cancer diagnosed in their family, I am so appreciative of Planned Parenthood and what they do and what they stand for.

Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains today announced that it is expanding its education, outreach, and services for breast health to patients in Colorado.

The announcement is part of a nationwide expansion of Planned Parenthood’s breast health programs, made possible by an outpouring of support and donations from the public response to the Susan G. Komen for the Cure Foundation’s decision to exclude Planned Parenthood from their grant process in late January.

When this national edict originally came down, the Denver and Aspen Komen affiliates decried the direction from their national office. Though Komen quickly reversed course, nearly $67,000 in online donations came to PPRM in Colorado to support Planned Parenthood’s role in providing life-saving breast health services to people most in need.

As a result of the monies raised locally and in keeping with our donors’ wishes and our commitment to breast health services, PPRM is proud to announce the creation of the Breast Health Services Project at our Arvada health center.

“The initial response following the Komen decision was overwhelming,” said Vicki Cowart, PPRM president and CEO. “We are so grateful to the community for their support of Planned Parenthood and their recognition of the important role we play in our communities by providing life-saving cancer screenings. We are also thankful for the strong relationship and partnership we have always had with the Denver and Aspen Komen affiliates. In these tough economic times, more women than ever need access to essential health care services—our organizations work together to make sure this happens.”

The Arvada health center, located at 7853 N. Wadsworth Blvd, will receive support for the Breast Health Services Project to provide breast health screenings and breast self awareness education in an effort to prevent breast cancer for uninsured and underinsured women.

In 2011, the Arvada health center saw over 8,000 patients, 69 percent of whom had no applicable form of insurance. Additionally, the health center is not currently being served by a Komen grant.
In addition, PPRM was awarded a $30,000 grant from Planned Parenthood Federation of America to help cover costs associated with follow-up care. When Planned Parenthood doctors and nurses identify potential breast abnormalities in patients, they refer patients for diagnostic follow-up care. Various Planned Parenthood health centers throughout the state will have these funds available.
Already, PPRM is a trusted provider of breast cancer screening for women in Colorado. Last year, PPRM provided breast cancer screening for 15,452 women. Nationwide, Planned Parenthood health centers provide breast cancer screening for nearly 750,000 women each year.

The expanded breast health program will give more women access to lifesaving cancer screenings, diagnostic services, and educational resources to help them identify potential breast health issues early, and make the best decisions about their health care.

“At Planned Parenthood, we are committed to removing the barriers that stand in the way of women getting screened for breast cancer,” said Cowart. “Whether it’s a clinical exam, necessary follow-up services like biopsies or ultrasounds, or information about their options—we’re pleased that we can serve our communities with vital screenings and follow-up care.”

PPRM’s client-centered cancer screening intervention services include breast self-awareness education, clinical breast exams, and diagnostic referrals to clients most at risk for breast cancer. During these visits clients are educated on how to reduce the risk factors for breast cancer; such as diet, exercise, monitoring their bodies for changes, knowing their family history and knowing their risk factors.

Planned Parenthood is a critical resource for women in the fight to detect breast cancer early. One in five women has turned to Planned Parenthood at some time in her life for health care. To learn more, go to www.pprm.org or call 1.800.230.PLAN.

Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains provides services for gay men

Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains provides services for gay men including STD Testing and Treatment, HIV Testing and Education, Prostate and Testicular Cancer Screenings, and Education and Referrals.

Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains - It's for gay men, too!

Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains provides services for gay men including STD Testing and Treatment, HIV Testing and Education, Prostate and Testicular Cancer Screenings, and Education and Referrals.

Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains responds to Personhood Colorado’s attempt at 2012 election

For the third time in the past consecutive General Elections, Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains today vowed to defeat the so-called “personhood” initiative. This announcement comes after Personhood Colorado, the measure’s sponsor, submitted the required number of signatures to qualify its ballot initiative on the November 2012 election.

“Coloradans trust and respect women. ‘Personhood’ measures do not respect women and their families,” said PPRM CEO Vicki Cowart. “Today, Planned Parenthood gears up for a third campaign. We’re hopeful that the third verse will be the same as the first and second.”

Colorado voters overwhelmingly rejected “personhood” in 2008 and 2010 – by three-to-one margins. While the 2012 ballot initiative uses slightly different language than in years past, it has the same harmful outcomes.

"Personhood" amendments ban all abortion, specifically for victims of rape and incest. Personal, private medical decisions would be taken out of a woman’s hands, and controlled by politicians and the government. This includes important decisions such as what birth control to use, fertility treatments, the treatment of miscarriages, and whether or not to end a pregnancy. These decisions are best left to a woman, her family, and her faith.

The timing of Personhood Colorado’s announcement coincides with data from a new poll conducted by Lake Research Partners* showing that 64 percent of Colorado voters have a very or somewhat favorable view of Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains.

“Personhood” measures have been attempted in other states, but just like in Colorado, these efforts have proved futile. Most recently:

• Voters in Mississippi— sometimes characterized as the most conservative state in the union— defeated “personhood” by a 16-point margin in the November 2011 election.
• “Personhood” supporters in Ohio, Florida, Nevada, California, and Montana failed to get enough signatures to get on the November 2012 ballot.
• The Supreme Court of Oklahoma roundly rejected a “personhood” effort in April.

“Planned Parenthood will work hard to educate voters. We will knock on doors, canvass, phone-bank, and more. Health decisions should be left to a woman, her doctor and her faith—not politicians or the government. Coloradoans already voted this down twice, we hope voters will again vote ‘no,” said Cowart.

PPRM is looking forward to working with our coalition partners and reengaging the people and organizations who pledged their time, talent, and resources to defeat the 2008 and 2010 initiatives.
For more information on how you can get involved, please visit Nopersonhood.org or “like” the No On Personhood Facebook page.

*May 2012 survey of 801 likely 2012 Colorado voters.

Advertiser Shout Out: Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains

Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains provides services for gay men including STD Testing and Treatment, HIV Testing and Education, Prostate and Testicular Cancer Screenings, and Education and Referrals.

Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains Statement on Decision in Colorado Court Case on Birth Control Benefit

Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains is deeply disappointed following Friday’s court decision granting a preliminary injunction that allows a Colorado-based employer to deny no-cost birth control to his employees. This case seeks to give a private employer the ability to take away the new birth control coverage benefit from employees—a standard benefit afforded to women in America under the Affordable Care Act. 

 “Access to birth control is a critical health and economic concern for women,” said PPRM President and CEO Vicki Cowart. “The Affordable Care Act has guaranteed a new standard of health coverage for every American, regardless of their employer’s personal political views. There is no reason why a private, for-profit business owner should be able to demand a personal exception from this standard—denying his employees the same level of coverage that others will have.” 

Doctors and public health experts agree that birth control is a basic and essential component of women’s preventive health care, and 34 percent of women voters report having struggled to afford prescription birth control at some point in their lives and, as a result, used birth control inconsistently. Virtually all women in America have used birth control. In fact, 99 percent of sexually active American women report using contraception at some point in their lives. Every year, Planned Parenthood sees over two million women specifically for contraception at nearly 800 health centers across the country.

“Colorado law already requires contraception coverage in the small group and individual health insurance markets. In addition, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment has designated unintended pregnancy one of 10 “winnable battles” in our state. We must take Colorado forward, not backward,” said Cowart. “Access to affordable birth control is not only a basic health imperative for women, it is a critical economic issue for millions of families struggling to juggle their monthly expenses. Politics have no place in a woman’s personal health decisions.”

According to a recent Hart Research Poll, when it comes to employers providing full coverage for prescription birth control, voters see this issue as a matter of women’s health care and access to birth control and reject efforts to frame this as a religious liberty issue. By a 20-point margin, voters are more likely to say that this issue is a matter of women’s health care and access to birth control (56 percent) than a matter of employer’s religious liberty (36 percent) when it comes to whether religiously affiliated employers should be required to provide coverage for prescription birth control.

Find out what Planned Parenthood can do for gay men

Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains provides services for gay men including STD Testing and Treatment, HIV Testing and Education, Prostate and Testicular Cancer Screenings, and Education and Referrals.

Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains provides services for gay men

Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains provides services for gay men including STD Testing and Treatment, HIV Testing and Education, Prostate and Testicular Cancer Screenings, and Education and Referrals.

Find out what Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains can do for you

Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains provides services for gay men including STD Testing and Treatment, HIV Testing and Education, Prostate and Testicular Cancer Screenings, and Education and Referrals.

Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains is for gay men

Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains provides services for gay men including STD Testing and Treatment, HIV Testing and Education, Prostate and Testicular Cancer Screenings, and Education and Referrals.

Denver recognizes National HIV Awareness Month with vigil at State Capitol

In recognition of National HIV Awareness Month in July, Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains is partnering with Rocky Mountain Cares, One Colorado, and the GLBT Community Center of Colorado (The Center) to remember, celebrate and honor those who have been impacted by HIV/AIDS by holding a vigil on the west steps of the Colorado State Capitol on July 12 at 5:30 p.m.

The vigil will feature State Sen. Pat Steadman, Dr. David Cohn, former associate director of Denver Public Health and founder of the Denver Health Infectious Diseases/AIDS Clinic, in addition to Dr. Benjamin Young, medical director for Rocky Mountain Cares and vice president and chief medical officer of the International Association of Physicians in AIDS Care. Rocky Mountain CARES provides high quality centralized medical care and supportive services to a diverse and inclusive Colorado HIV/AIDS community.

July is National HIV Awareness Month, which aims to to re-ignite a national discussion about HIV/AIDS in order to increase public awareness, end HIV stigma and discrimination, and engage new stakeholders in the fight against the disease, with the ultimate goal of ending the epidemic.

Since the first HIV/AIDS diagnosis in the United States 31 years ago, with the first case reported in Colorado less than a year later, HIV/AIDS has taken many loved ones. Today, one new person becomes infected with HIV every 9.5 minutes in the United States, and 1 in 5 individuals don’t know that they are HIV positive. It is estimated that there are about 11,000 people in Colorado who are known to be living with HIV, and 2,000-3,000 are living with HIV, but are not yet diagnosed. Approximately 430 people are diagnosed with HIV in Colorado each year.

Yet there are glimmers of hope as significant advances in care, treatment and prevention have occurred over the last two decades. Recent and ongoing progress in care and new findings in research are making long and healthy lives possible for HIV/AIDS patients, and the rates of infection and death have markedly declined. There is also a growing number of advocates, activists, and concerned citizens who have joined the fight to end HIV/AIDS.

Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains is for gay men

Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains provides services for gay men including STD Testing and Treatment, HIV Testing and Education, Prostate and Testicular Cancer Screenings, and Education and Referrals.