Komen Executive Quits After Planned Parenthood Dispute

Karen Handel announced her resignation as vice president Tuesday

An executive with the Susan G. Komen for the Cure breast-cancer charity has resigned after a dispute over funding for Planned Parenthood. The resignation came in a letter obtained by The Associated Press.

Karen Handel announced her resignation as vice president for public policy in a letter to Dallas-based Komen officials Tuesday.

Handel said in her letter that she had supported cutting off funding for Planned Parenthood.

Handel, a former Republican candidate for governor in Georgia, emphasized her opposition to abortion during her 2010 campaign.

Komen founder Nancy Brinker accepted Handel's resignation and issued this statement:

"We have made mistakes in how we have handled recent decisions and take full accountability for what has resulted, but we cannot take our eye off the ball when it comes to our mission," Brinker said in a statement. "To do this effectively, we must learn from what we've done right, what we've done wrong and achieve our goal for the millions of women who rely on us."

Komen announced last week that it had adopted criteria excluding Planned Parenthood from future grants for breast-cancer screenings because it was under government investigation. It cited a probe launched by a congressman at the urging of anti-abortion groups.

The charity reversed that decision days later.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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