New York mayor steps in after leading cancer charity withdrew funds amid claims it was under pressure from pro-life groups

New York mayor Michael Bloomberg has entered the controversy over America's largest breast cancer advocacy group's cut in funding to Planned Parenthood by vowing to make up $250,000 of the missing funds out of his own pocket.

A furious row raged this week over a decision by Susan G Komen for the Cure, the group behind the Pink Ribbon campaign, to cut its long-term funding for a Planned Parenthood project to screen disadvantaged women for breast cancer.

In a statement, Bloomberg said: "Politics have no place in health care. Breast cancer screening saves lives and hundreds of thousands of women rely on Planned Parenthood for access to care. We should be helping women access that care, not placing barriers in their way."

Planned Parenthood, the largest reproductive and sexual health service provider in the US, provides screenings for cervical, breast cancer, sexually transmitted diseases and HIV/Aids. It is also widely known to help women access abortions and contraception.

The row escalated on Thursday after it emerged that one leading health official for Komen resigned over the $650,000 funding cut, amid reports that it had caved in to the anti-abortion right.

Cecile Richards, the President of Planned Parenthood Federation of America, said in a statement: "On behalf of hundreds of thousands of women nation wide who rely on Planned Parenthood for breast cancer education and screening, we are enormously grateful to mayor Bloomberg. This contribution will help ensure that politics don't interfere with women having access to health care.

"People all across the country have stepped forward in the last 48 hours to offer help and support, and the Mayor's donation will help ensure that no woman is denied breast cancer services because of right-wing political pressure campaigns."

Bloomberg said he would donate $1 for every new dollar Planned Parenthood raised up to $250,000.

Komen says it made the cut because of a newly-adopted rule preventing it from funding any group under congressional investigation. Planned Parenthood is currently the subject of an investigation by Cliff Stearns, an anti-abortion Republican congressman from Florida, to find out if has spent public money on abortions.

However, a report in the Atlantic quoting "sources with direct knowledge of the Komen decision-making" process said the new rule was created only in order to provide an excuse to cut off Planned Parenthood.

The website reports that the rule was driven by the organisation's new senior vice-president for public policy, Karen Handel. Handel, who ran unsuccessfully for governor of Georgia is staunchly anti-abortion.

Former communications advisor to Komen, John Hammarley, told the Atlantic that Komen's top health official, Mollie Williams, resigned in protest immediately following the decision.

"Mollie is one of the most highly respected and ethical people inside the organisation, and she felt she couldn't continue under these conditions," Hammarley said. "The Komen board of directors are very politically savvy folks, and I think over time they thought if they gave in to the very aggressive propaganda machine of the anti-abortion groups, that the issue would go away. It seemed very short-sighted to me."

In a statement sent to the Atlantic, Mollie Williams said she was saddened by the divide between Komen and Planned Parenthood.

Williams, who said she could not respond to questions due to a duty of confidentiality towards her former employer, said: "I have dedicated my career to fighting for the rights of the marginalised and underserved. And I believe it would be a mistake for any organisation to bow to political pressure and compromise its mission."

She expressed a deep admiration for the work of Komen and the work of Planned Parenthood, adding: "The divide between these two very important organisations saddens me. I am hopeful their passionate and courageous leaders, Nancy Brinker and Cecile Richards, can swiftly resolve this conflict in a manner that benefits the women they both serve."

Terry O'Neill, president of the National Organisation for Women, said she had "no doubt" that the rule was manufactured to cut off funding and described it as "offensive and rapidly anti-women".

"The investigation itself is being read by an individual ideologically opposed to women having access to reproductive health care. Planned Parenthood provides cervical screening, breast screening, screening for sexually transmitted infection, screening for HIV/Aids. It saved lives."

"The investigation is bogus and politically motivated. Now you have a bogus politically motivated investigation being used as a pretext for a bogus politically motivated decision by Susan G Komen. Susan G Komen is stepping off the cliff with this decision. It should itself be de-funded."

A statement on Komen's website to "set the record straight" denied that the new rules were politically motivated. It said that the new rule was introduced as part of a strengthening of eligibility criteria.

It said: "We are dismayed and extremely disappointed that actions we have taken to strengthen our granting process have been widely mischaracterised."

"Starting in 2010, Komen began an initiative to help us do a better job of measuring the impact of community grants. This is important because we invest significant dollars in our local community programs – $93 million in 2011, which provided for 700,000 breast health screenings and diagnostic procedures.

"Following this review, we made the decision to implement stronger performance criteria for our grantees to minimise duplication and free up dollars for direct services to help vulnerable women. To support this new granting strategy, Komen has also implemented more stringent eligibility standards to safeguard donor dollars. Consequently, some organisations are no longer eligible to receive Komen grants.

It added: "We regret that these new policies have impacted some longstanding grantees, such as Planned Parenthood, but want to be absolutely clear that our grant-making decisions are not about politics. Throughout our 30 year history, our priority has always been and will continue to be the women we serve. As we move forward, we are working to ensure that there is no interruption or gaps in services for the women who need our support most in the fight against breast cancer."

A report last year on FactCheck.org said that 3% of Planned Parenthood's services were abortions and 10% of its clients received abortions.

The Komen grant in question, for $680,000, went to 19 of Planned Parenthood's branches to pay for breast screenings for disadvantaged women.