Thinking Out Loud: Planned Parenthood in the Body-Parts Business

The release of secretly filmed videos of Planned Parenthood officials discussing “harvesting” the organs of aborted fetuses to sell on the open market has earned it well-deserved outrage, and, at minimum, should mean the end of all federal funding to Planned Parenthood, which annually receives $500 million of U.S. taxpayer money, none of which, by the way, is legally allowed to pay for abortions.

But what hasn’t been mentioned is that Planned Parenthood is treating this harvesting like any other business, complete with a business model and corporate strategy. According to Planned Parenthood’s senior director of medical services, the now infamous Dr. Deborah Nucatola, that strategy should include a delivery infrastructure in which large-scale numbers of fetal organs and tissue go from seller to buyer in the most cost-effective manner.

For example, in one video she points out that Cook County Hospital in Chicago not only aborts lots of babies, but also is centrally located and is near “two airports,” meaning quick, reliable, low-cost air transport of fetal organs and tissue.

Further embracing free-market principles, Dr. Nucatola notes that different customers have different needs, so abortion procedures should be planned accordingly. “For example,” she says, “if I know what they are looking for, I’ll just keep it in the back of my mind and try to at least keep that part (a particular organ or tissue) intact.”

In other words, her abortion procedure could vary, depending on what fetal organs and tissue are in current demand by customers. Altering abortion procedures in order to preserve different parts of the aborted fetus for sale is loathsome enough, but it can also endanger the safety of the procedure, meaning the life of the patient, which even in the most professional clinics is still risky. And is the woman undergoing the abortion aware that Dr. Nucatola plans to alter the procedure, or why?

Also, Dr. Nucatola’s business plan includes keeping abreast of her competition, which includes Family Planning Associates (FPA). “I’m telling you,” she told the person secretly videotaping her, “they (FPA) may go for the money.” By which she means FPA could outbid Planned Parenthood in buying aborted fetal parts from different suppliers. But as she confidently adds, “Their volume is not going to compare to Planned Parenthood’s volume. We have 40 percent of the market.”

So think on this a moment. We’re talking supply-and-demand capitalism, including a business model that increases production, creates a centralized and streamlined delivery procedure, tailors product to meet current customer demand, keeps a close eye on the competition, watches costs and preserves market share.

Except that the business in question is the selling of body parts of aborted fetuses, or — as many millions of Americans call them — murdered babies.