Mission
Planned Parenthood is made up of many separate entities that are tied by a central mission:
- Help people live full, healthy lives — no matter your income, insurance, gender identity, sexual orientation, race, or immigration status;
- Provide the high-quality inclusive and comprehensive sexual and reproductive health care services all people need and deserve — with respect and compassion;
- Advocate for public policies that protect and expand reproductive rights and access to a full range of sexual and reproductive health care services, including abortion;
- Provide medically accurate education that advances the understanding of human sexuality, healthy relationships, and body autonomy;
- Promote research and technology that enhances reproductive health care and access.
Goals
Healthy Communities
The Planned Parenthood motto is: Care, no matter what. Your health and well-being are Planned Parenthood’s top priority. Planned Parenthood health centers will provide health care services, no matter who you are or where you live.
Each Planned Parenthood health center is staffed with expert nurses, doctors, educators, and additional support staff dedicated to ensuring that everyone in their community has high-quality, affordable care. One in five women in the United States has chosen Planned Parenthood for health care at least once in her life.
Community is the heart and soul of Planned Parenthood and we are invested in and committed to the communities and neighborhoods we serve. This includes the work of nearly 600 health centers nationwide, operated by 49 separately incorporated nonprofit organizations. Each health center reflects the diverse needs of its community and provides a wide range of confidential, safe, compassionate, and high-quality services.
Most of the 2.1 million patients who visit Planned Parenthood health centers annually seek education, resources and preventive services — including birth control and sex education, STI testing and treatment, and screenings for cervical, breast, and other cancers. Planned Parenthood health centers across the country are also proud to provide abortion and counseling, where legally allowed. Attentive physicians, nurse practitioners, and other staff take time to discuss each individual's needs and concerns — offering patients an honest, supportive, non-judgmental space to ask questions and make informed decisions about their bodies and their futures.
A Resource for Information and Education
Planned Parenthood is the largest sexual health educator in the country. Our education programming reaches 1 million people annually in classrooms and communities across the country — and millions more online.
As a respected leader in sex education, we deliver sex education programs, resources, and tools that empower all people to make informed choices about sex, relationships, and their bodies to lead their healthiest lives.
Planned Parenthood is proud of its vital role in reaching young people and adults with sex education that promotes sexual health and wellness across their lifespan.
Every young person deserves sex education that honors all of who they are, their experiences, and their own vision for their futures. With the availability and quality of sex education programs still wildly inconsistent across the U.S. — if it’s provided at all — too many young people still aren’t getting the information and skills they need for a lifetime of good health. Now more than ever, young people need access to information and skills necessary to understand their bodies, define their boundaries, protect their health, and shape their futures.
A Strong Advocate for Sexual and Reproductive Health Care
Access to quality health care is a human right, and Planned Parenthood Federation of America, as well as local Planned Parenthood organizations, engage in ongoing education and advocacy work to ensure that everyone has access to the care we need.
And we’re not alone. Planned Parenthood has a nationwide base of 19 million activists, supporters, and donors who work to protect fundamental sexual and reproductive rights.
Separately, Planned Parenthood Action Fund is a separate nonprofit membership organization tax-exempt under section 501(c)(4). The Action Fund engages in educational, advocacy, and limited electoral activity, including grassroots organizing, legislative advocacy, and voter education. Like Planned Parenthood Federation of America, many Planned Parenthood affiliates have related 501(c)(4) local organizations. If you are interested in learning more about the Action Fund, you can visit www.plannedparenthoodaction.org.
At Planned Parenthood, we know there’s no reproductive freedom without racial justice, and we take seriously our responsibility to create belonging and respect for the millions of patients and partners we serve. We have the fundamental goal to defend health care for the people most harmed by racist and discriminatory systems.
At Planned Parenthood, we smash stigma, build bridges, learn and grow, and fight for the rights of all. No matter what.
Advancing Global Health
Many individuals around the world are denied access to vital reproductive and sexual health care and information, whether by poverty, a lack of basic services, or politics and war.
Planned Parenthood Global — the international arm of Planned Parenthood Federation of America — works with local organizations in Africa and Latin America to increase access to health care and education. Alongside local leadership, we foster sustainable health and education programs and provide financial grants and funding for family planning services.
Planned Parenthood Federation of America is a founding member of the International Planned Parenthood Federation, based in London.
