House Votes To Defund Planned Parenthood, Setting Up Showdown for Shutdown

The president of the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists called the passage of H.R. 3504 “a disservice to America’s women and gross legislative interference into the practice of medicine, putting politicians between women and their trusted doctors.” (Photo: Corbis)

The U.S. House of Representatives today (Sept. 18) passed two bills, H.R. 3134, and H.R. 3504, that aim to block legal abortion and roll back millions of Americans’ access to essential reproductive health care.

Sponsored by Rep. Diane Black (R-TN), H.R. 3134 prohibits the availability of any federal funds for any purpose to Planned Parenthood or its affiliate clinics nationwide for one year unless the organization certifies that none of its clinics will perform abortions during that time period. The bill also specifies that the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Agriculture must seek repayment of federal assistance received by Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc., or any affiliate or clinic, if it violates the terms of the certification required by the act.

Also known as the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act, H.R. 3504 is sponsored by Rep. Trent Franks (R-AZ) and would amend the federal criminal code to require any health care practitioner who is present when a child is “born alive” following an abortion or attempted abortion to: (1) exercise the same degree of care as reasonably provided to any other child born alive at the same gestational age, and (2) ensure that such child is immediately admitted to a hospital.

Per the bill, “the term ‘born alive’ means the complete expulsion or extraction from his or her mother, at any stage of development, who after such expulsion or extraction breathes or has a beating heart, pulsation of the umbilical cord, or definite movement of voluntary muscles, regardless of whether the umbilical cord has been cut.” Physicians could face up to five years of prison time for lack of adherence to this measure and may also face civil suits from women who wish to press charges.

In a statement, Mark S. DeFrancesco, MD, president of the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, called the passage of H.R. 3504 “a disservice to America’s women and gross legislative interference into the practice of medicine, putting politicians between women and their trusted doctors.”

“This bill and others like it are part of a larger attempt to deny women access to safe, legal, evidence-based abortion care,” he said in the statement. “We urge the United States Senate and the President to stand with women and stand up for safe medical care, by preventing this and other legislation like it to become law.”

Democrats in the House voiced their opposition to the measures during the debate held on the bills this morning. “This attack on a venerable and respected provider of high-quality health care would have a devastating impact on women, especially women in rural communities, low-income women and women of color and would deny women access to preventive care, life-saving cancer screenings and family planning services,” said Rep. Judy Chu (D-CA) during the debate. “Approximately one woman in five has relied on Planned Parenthood for health care at some point in her lifetime.”

Most patients served by Planned Parenthood have incomes that are at or below 150 percent of the federal poverty line, noted Rep. Joe Kennedy (D-MA) during the morning debate. “If we pass this bill, we are turning our backs on those patients,” Kennedy said. “We are telling low-income families in every corner of this country that we count their health and happiness less.”

Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), pointed out that H.R. 3134 — the bill that would block federal funding to Planned Parenthood — is based on unsupported allegations made in recent Center for Medical Progress “sting” videos, which have been shown to be heavily edited and full of inaccuracies. The bill “ignores the fact that there has been no evidence of wrongdoing by Planned Parenthood,” she said. “In fact, five states have now conducted their own investigations into the charges against Planned Parenthood and have found that no laws have been broken.”

Related: Report Highlights Inaccuracies in ‘Sting’ Videos Targeting Planned Parenthood

Several state-level case studies have already shown the detrimental effects of eliminating Planned Parenthood as a preventive health care provider for low-income, under-insured women and families. When the Planned Parenthood health center in Scott County, Ind., was shuttered by state budget cuts in 2013, thereby eliminating the region’s primary resource for HIV testing and counseling, the state found itself facing an unprecedented HIV epidemic within a mere two years.

And after Texas — arguably the state with the most restrictive laws regarding women’s health care in the country — eliminated Planned Parenthood health centers from its family planning program for low-income women, there was a 9 percent decrease in program enrollees, a 26 percent decrease in Medicaid claims, and a 54 percent decrease in contraceptive claims — fueling a 67 percent decrease in net savings from family planning across the state.

Furthermore, the federal funding received by Planned Parenthood is for Medicaid reimbursement, and no federal funds may be spent on any costs affiliated with abortion care. Defunding Planned Parenthood would primarily affect Americans who qualify for Medicaid, as well as low-income households who fail to meet Medicaid limits and cannot afford insurance — but can receive preventive health care services, including cancer screenings and contraception, on a sliding scale based on need.

Already, the majority of Medicaid programs are experiencing provider shortages, with more than two-thirds of states reporting difficulty in ensuring enough providers, especially OB-GYN care, for enrollees. Planned Parenthood affiliate clinics make up 10 percent of all publicly funded family planning centers, serving 36 percent of all clients who obtain care from the family planning health care network. Likewise, Planned Parenthood health centers make up 13 percent of all Title X-funded clinics, and yet serve 37 percent of all Title X clients. (Title X is the federal grant program that provides comprehensive family planning and reproductive health services, including contraception.)

Related: Title X, the Federal Family Planning Program, Is in Danger

Eric Ferrero, vice president of communications for Planned Parenthood Action Fund, released the following statement regarding the passage of both bills:

Meanwhile, the Senate has plans to vote early next week on a bill that seeks to implement a federal ban on abortions performed after 20 weeks, a measure that was eventually tabled after resistance by female Republican leadership earlier this year.

Congress only has 11 more days until the government runs out of money and is forced to shut down. Leadership in the Tea Party, the far right-wing branch of the Republican party, insist that they will not agree to any federal budget that does not fully defund Planned Parenthood, while Democrats have made clear that the funding of Planned Parenthood is a non-starter in budget negotiations. Furthermore, President Barack Obama has already vowed to veto any legislation or budget that defunds the reproductive and sexual healthcare provider.

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