The Latest Move in States' War Against Planned Parenthood

Following controversy over a propaganda video released by a likely fraudulent anti-abortion organization called the Center for Medical Progress, a total of five state governments have now voted to defund Planned Parenthood. The video is heavily edited to show Planned Parenthood's senior director of medical services, Dr. Deborah Nucatola, discussing "selling baby-parts," which, of course, Planned Parenthood does not actually do.

On Wednesday, August 3--after state senators in Louisiana, New Hampshire, and Alabama cut funds to the nonprofit organization, which provides health care services to women, oftentimes at free and reduced costs depending on the patient's income--the Obama administration warned states that blocking women's access to affordable care is not in accordance with U.S. law, according to Reuters. Federal law requires state Medicaid programs to provide family-planning services, and halting funding to Planned Parenthood actively denies these programs to women. A report from the United States Government Accountability office states that over two-thirds of states currently do not have an adequate number of providers to service Medicaid enrollees, especially when it comes to OB/GYN care.

A poll conducted by Hart Research Associates shows that a majority of voters in New Hampshire, Ohio, and Pennsylvania (where similar measures have been proposed by Republican senators) "strongly oppose" ending government funding to Planned Parenthood, which offers cancer screenings, fertility treatments, and information on sexual health in addition to abortion services.

Late last week, Arkansas and Ohio became the latest states to end Medicaid payments to the organization, despite the warnings from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). AP first reported that the Republican Governor of Arkansas, Asa Hutchinson, ordered the state's Department of Human Services to end its contract with Planned Parenthood within 30 days; that same day, the Republican Governor in Utah instructed state agencies to stop forwarding federal funding to the non-profit.

Even though the U.S. Senate vote to defund Planned Parenthood following the viral video-induced panic failed, this state-by-state erosion of human rights is still happening. And illegally taking away federal funding isn't the only way that Republican led states are attempting to interfere with women's health, either: The state of Florida is trying a more subtle tactic. Florida Governor Rick Scott (R) ordered an inspection of all 16 Planned Parenthood clinics in the state following the outcry sparked by the doctored video put out by the Center for Medical Progress. Following the investigation, the state Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA) alleges they found that three of the clinics were performing unlicensed second trimester abortions. (The state of Florida requires clinics that perform second trimester abortions to meet additional requirements.)

This is where it gets confusing, mostly due to the confounding administrative code that applies to abortion clinics: In the current version of law 59A-9.019, sent to Broadly by AHCA, it outlines contradicting parameters for the first and second trimesters of pregnancy. The law states that the second trimester is "that portion of a pregnancy following the 12th week and extending through the 24th week of gestation." However, as shown by the definition AHCA provides for the first trimester, "12 weeks of pregnancy" is equivalent to "the first 14 completed weeks from the last normal menstrual period."

Correspondence between ACHA and Planned Parenthood in 2006 confirms that within the Florida law "the first 14 weeks completed after the last normal menstrual period" is equivalent to "the first 12 weeks of pregnancy." This means that any abortions performed 14 weeks into the pregnancy are first trimester abortions--which the three Planned Parenthood branches under current scrutiny are licensed to provide.

Planned Parenthood has filed a request for an emergency injunction against the state of Florida in order to protect women's access to safe abortions, the organization said in a statement released yesterday. Broadly reached out to Florida health officials at AHCA for comment, and we were referred to a statement that claimed, "Planned Parenthood self-reported that they were performing unauthorized abortions during the second trimester at three of their Florida clinics. The Agency looks forward to litigating this matter."

This statement contradicts AHCA's own report from an audit of a Planned Parenthood in St. Petersburg, which says, "The clinic manager stated that they provide first trimester abortions only. They consider first trimester to be up to 13.6 weeks (Ed. note: as does Florida law)." According to the report, the AHCA inspector found multiple patient records from abortions after 13 weeks but before 14 weeks, which is, again, completely within the first trimester. The inspector, however, chose to interpret these procedures as second trimester abortions, against the near unanimous opinion of health professionals. The same can be said for the other clinics in question. A copy of the report can be viewed here.

"Nearly a decade ago, state officials made it clear that Planned Parenthood is operating fully within the law, and nothing has changed. The state's actions are patently disingenuous and constitute a wholly unwarranted political attack," Planned Parenthood said in their press release regarding the suit.

Of course, since this entire investigation into Planned Parenthood has revealed itself to be a calculated political attack, it's no surprise that AHCA is "looking forward" to disrupting, stalling, and ultimately eliminating the non-profit's day-to-day procedures, potentially endangering women's lives in the process.