In a major victory Thursday, the U.S. House voted to strip Planned Parenthood’s Medicaid funds for one year. The year will begin immediately on the day President Trump signs the bill, if the Senate also passes it.
Since the defunding is coming through a reconciliation bill, 51 votes will be needed for passage in the Senate. The defunding will redirect approximately 80 percent of the abortion chain’s taxpayer funding and send it to the comprehensive health care centers around the nation that outnumber Planned Parenthood by the thousands.
Currently, Planned Parenthood receives roughly $553 million in government funding annually (amounting to $1.5 million per day), and the omnibus budget bill would have continued this. However, the reconciliation bill passed today would reverse the huge majority of the abortion chain’s funding for one year. Out of Planned Parenthood’s $553 million taxpayer dollars, roughly $450 million comes from Medicaid, 90 percent of which comes from the federal government. Thus, the cut in the reconciliation bill amounts to approximately 80 percent of Planned Parenthood’s total government funding.
States will still be allowed to handle their own Medicaid dollars, just as they do with funds governed by the Hyde amendment. Under Hyde, federal Medicaid dollars are directed to not pay for most abortions, but some states still pay for abortions with their state programs and state tax dollars. Battles to defund Planned Parenthood at the state levels are still necessary.
In 130 pages, the reconciliation bill also repeals and replaces portions of ObamaCare, and this is what the Senate debate is predicted to center on in the coming days.
As for the House, there was celebration even prior to Thursday’s vote. Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) told reporters on Wednesday night: “We’re gonna pass it. We’re gonna pass it. Let’s be optimistic about life!” He was correct. The bill passed, 217 to 213. During debate, Leader McCarthy recognized Congresswoman Diane Black (R-TN) as one of the representatives whose work was key to the bill’s passage, citing her decades of experience as a registered nurse in the health care system and her passion for the preborn.
In a series of videos, Live Action has revealed details — many coming from Planned Parenthood itself — that demonstrate the chain is America’s abortion corporation. The majority of Americans oppose funding abortion-focused organizations with taxpayer money. You can watch the investigative video series and get the facts here.
