Contact: Troy Newman, President, 316-683-6790 ext. 111; Cheryl Sullenger, Senior Vice President, 316-516-3034; both with Operation Rescue 

WASHINGTON, May 5, 2017 /Christian Newswire/ -- By a vote of 217-213 - the thinnest of margins - the House of Representatives voted yesterday to advance a health care provision that would defund Planned Parenthood for one year.

"I consider this a huge victory for us - one that could very easily have been a defeat. We thank President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence for working with Speaker Paul Ryan and members of the House to get this deal done. This is yet another promise kept by the Trump administration," said Troy Newman, President of Operation Rescue.

Now the legislation, which included the repeal and replacement of Obamacare, will go to the Senate where significant changes are expected to be made.

"While we celebrate this momentary victory, there is still much work to be done to ensure that the defunding of Planned Parenthood remains in the bill or is not weakened. The Senate fight promises to be a tougher one, so we encourage pro-life supporters to start contacting their Senators now to urge them to stand in agreement with the House to defund America's largest merchant of abortion," said Newman.

Trump has vowed to sign legislation that would end the bankrolling of Planned Parenthood, which currently receives over $500 million in federal funding each year.

"Next, we must work to make the defunding of Planned Parenthood permanent," said Newman. "There are many battles still to be fought before we can rest assured that our hard-earned tax money will never again enable an organization that profits from child-killing."

Read this statement online.

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