A federal judge issued a temporary injunction July 7 halting the Trump Administration’s elimination of Medicaid funding for Planned Parenthood.
On Monday, Planned Parenthood Federation of America, the Planned Parenthood League of Massachusetts and Planned Parenthood Association of Utah filed a lawsuit in federal court.
At issue is the provision in the new tax and spending bill signed into law by President Donald Trump on July 4 that eliminates one year of Medicaid payments from Planned Parenthood, the nation’s largest abortion provider.
“The prohibition specifically targets Planned Parenthood Federation of America and its member health care providers in order to punish them for lawful activity, namely advocating for and providing legal abortion access wholly outside the Medicaid program and without using any federal funds,” the lawsuit states.
Prior to the judge’s action, Congress’ passage last week of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act—which includes defunding Planned Parenthood for 12 months—was causing both celebration and consternation among pro-life advocates.
The budget reconciliation process—whereby Congress debates revising debt limits, addressing federal spending and adjusting tax policy—has been underway since February.
The Republican-controlled House passed its version of the reconciliation bill in late May, which would have defunded the nation’s largest abortion provider for 10 years. But the Senate’s amended version of the bill, which passed July 2 with Vice President J. D. Vance casting the deciding vote, blocked federal tax payer funding of the abortion giant for only one year.
The House approved the Senate’s revised version of the bill on July 3 by a vote of 218-214. And President Donald Trump signed the historic legislation (H.R. 1) into law on July 4.
While SBA Pro-Life America and Americans United for Life described the defunding of Planned Parenthood for one year as a step forward, other pro-life advocates say the well-resourced abortion industry has the financial support to withstand such a temporary moratorium on federal funding.
“While any taxpayer money diverted away from Planned Parenthood is a good thing, defunding our nation’s largest abortion provider for just one year is not the win many of us who believe abortion is abhorrent wanted it to be,” said former Planned Parenthood director and founder of And Then There Were None, Abby Johnson, in a statement emailed to The Washington Stand.
“A year is enough time for many Planned Parenthood facilities to hold out to be re-funded. Some will close, but Planned Parenthood as an organization has millions of dollars, wealthy donors, and could support those clinics if they choose.”
Planned Parenthood, which received $792.2 million in taxpayer funding in 2024, reported total net assets of $2.52 billion. “Bottom line: it’s not enough and Republicans should permanently defund the abortion giant, not just for a paltry 12 months,” Johnson stated.
Quena González, senior director of Government Affairs at Family Research Council, called the one-year interruption “just a very short pause on defunding,” noting that under the newly enacted legislation, “taxpayers will still be forced to underwrite experimental gender transition procedures.”
Still, pro-life leaders say that for now they are grateful that Planned Parenthood and other abortion providers will not be entitled to federal Medicaid funding over the next 12 months.
“President Trump has once again delivered on his promise to protect the most vulnerable among us,” said Carol Tobias, president of National Right to Life. “With his signature on the ‘One Big Beautiful Bill,’ the flow of taxpayer dollars into the multibillion-dollar abortion industry will be halted for one year.”
SBA Pro-Life America President Marjorie Dannenfelser celebrated the historic legislation, saying:
“For decades now, horror after horror has emerged about Planned Parenthood—from the sale of baby body parts to aiding abusers and traffickers, botched abortions, and even the deaths of women in their facilities. Today, the long-fought goal of defunding this industry is finally a reality and taxpayers are no longer forced to prop up a business that harms women and girls, delivers substandard care, and performs over 400,000 abortions every year.
“Women and families deserve better. Community health centers, which outnumber Planned Parenthood facilities 15 to 1 nationwide, provide comprehensive, compassionate, and accessible care to those in need. This historic victory is a decisive step toward ending the abortion industry’s grip on our tax dollars and redirecting resources to places that truly serve women and families.”
Photo: Adobe Stock