Oops, Republicans have finally ditched Planned Parenthood as it scrambles for a ‘lifeline’

Planned Parenthood is in a difficult financial situation and is urgently trying to get emergency funding from states as the possibility of losing federal money grows.

A Republican budget plan moving through Congress would cut almost all federal funding for abortion providers, including important Medicaid payments. Even though the proposal does not specifically name Planned Parenthood, it is widely seen as an attack on the organization because it is the biggest abortion provider in the country.

The proposed law focuses on tax-exempt groups that mainly work in family planning but also provide abortions and get a lot of government money. If this federal funding is taken away, the consequences would be serious. About one-third of Planned Parenthood’s 600 clinics across the country could shut down. Many of these clinics are in states where abortion is still legal, meaning even places that protect reproductive rights would be affected.

According to Politico, critics say this move by Republicans in Congress is a “backdoor abortion ban,” trying to limit access to abortion even where it is legal by cutting off crucial funding. The amount of money clinics could lose in different states is enormous. In California, Planned Parenthood leaders have told Governor Gavin Newsom and state lawmakers that they would need more than $25 million every month in emergency funds if federal cuts happen.

Planned Parenthood could go under if states don’t act fast

This shows how much the organization depends on federal money to keep running. In Massachusetts, Planned Parenthood clinics could lose $14 million, which is about half of their budget. In Oregon, clinics get between $15 million and $18 million each year from Medicaid, money that would be at risk under the new federal plan. These numbers make it clear how much states would have to cover to stop clinics from closing and keep care available.

Lee, Hicks, a Planned Parenthood leader said, “my colleagues bring a great sense of community when we need it most, it’s talking about practices, learning about public health policies. I think the biggest thing is just how we make sure that our doors stay open, we certainly don’t want to abandon our patients, so we’re like, ‘How do we activate other funding sources?’”

Planned Parenthood is facing many challenges in getting this state funding. One big problem is that states have different deadlines for finalizing their budgets. Some, like California and Massachusetts, still have a few weeks to add emergency funds to their budgets. However, others, like New York, have already approved their budgets for the next year. This means Planned Parenthood and other reproductive health groups in those states have to ask for extra money outside the normal budget process, which is much harder.

Another issue is that state budgets are already tight, making it harder to find emergency money. California, for example, is dealing with a $12 billion budget shortfall. Earlier, Governor Newsom suggested taking over $500 million that had been set aside for Planned Parenthood, but the group fought back and got the money restored in the final budget plan. While this was a win, it shows how unstable state funding can be.

States are responding to this crisis in different ways. In California, the president of Planned Parenthood Affiliates of California said they need about $27 million per month to keep their 115 clinics open and is talking to the Governor’s office and lawmakers about both short-term and long-term solutions. Meanwhile, Governor Kathy Hochul and legislative leaders turned down a request for emergency funding in New York, saying they would only act if the federal cuts happened.

New York expects to lose more than $13 billion in Medicaid money from the federal plan, an amount the state says it cannot fully replace. Still, New York’s budget did include a $25 million grant to help with medication abortion access and another $4 million for clinic staff training. Massachusetts is looking into creating a special fund to help if federal cuts go through.