Planned Parenthood has vowed to take the Trump administration to court over a provision in the newly-passed megabill that would “defund” the nonprofit for up to one year.
Alexis McGill Johnson, president and CEO of the organization, said on Thursday the reconciliation bill is an “unlawful” and “targeted attack” on the organization and its patients.
“Everyone deserves access to high-quality, affordable health care. That’s what we’ve been fighting for the last century — and we’ll never stop,” McGill Johnson said in a statement. “We’ll be suing the Trump administration to stop this unlawful attack. See you in court.”
The bill, which passed in the House on Thursday and now awaits President Donald Trump’s signature, includes a provision that would prohibit providers that offer abortions from accepting Medicaid funding for any other reproductive health care services.
The decision followed a Supreme Court ruling that will make it easier for states to deprive Planned Parenthood and other clinics from receiving any Medicaid funding.
The provision was a major success for Republicans and anti-abortion advocates who have long called for the federal government to withhold funding to the organization over its abortion services.
SBA Pro-Life America, one of the nation’s largest anti-abortion groups, celebrated the House vote on Thursday. “Defunding the abortion industry, led by Planned Parenthood, marks the greatest pro-life victory since the Dobbs decision,” Marjorie Dannenfelser, the organization’s president, said in a statement.
Planned Parenthood has said its services are “essential” to the nation’s health care services.
Nearly 200 Planned Parenthood centers across 24 states are at risk of closures because of the provision, the group said. Ninety percent of those closures would occur in states where abortion is still legal. If that came to pass, Planned Parenthood said more than 1 million patients could lose access to birth control, cancer screenings, STI testing and treatment, and abortion.
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