[W]ASHINGTON — Planned Parenthood is challenging a change in a federal funding program that supports family planning services.
Three Planned Parenthood affiliates argued in a lawsuit filed in federal court last week that the Trump administration made “unexplained and unjustified” changes to the terms of the funding that will change who can participate in the Title X program.
Advocates in Vermont say the changes could result in the state losing money through the program, which provides family planning services as well as related health care, such as cancer screening.
Planned Parenthood affiliates from Wisconsin, Ohio and Utah argue in the lawsuit that in the latest call for applications for the nearly five-decade-old program, the Department of Health and Human Services did not reference the department’s clinical guidance for the program, nor did it reference contraception.
Planned Parenthood asserts that the changes in the terms of the grant are designed to “warp” the mission of the program, and that it will shift to favor organizations with abstinence-only approaches or ones that do not include a full range of contraception and other services.
Lucy Leriche of Planned Parenthood of Northern New England said the latest guidance from the Trump administration is an effort to “redirect” the federal funding streams from Planned Parenthood and toward crisis pregnancy centers or faith-based organizations.
“Evidence-based and scientifically accurate is no longer a requirement in the program,” Leriche said Monday.
The shift in the eligibility criteria could potentially have a big impact on the amount of funding Vermont receives through the program, she said.
In Vermont, Title X funding is administered through the Health Department, and all of the funding goes to Planned Parenthood locations around the state. With increased competition from organizations that may favor abstinence-only approaches, she said, it is possible that Vermont would be cut out of the Title X funding entirely.
Leriche said she is not aware of another entity that could provide the same services throughout the state.
“It’s a very reasonable possibility that Vermont would be left without an award at all,” she said.
A spokesperson for the Vermont Health Department said that the notice of funding said program plans to fund services through the program in “all listed areas.” Vermont is listed, and could receive as much as $797,000 from the federal government in the next year under the notice.
The state has received between $775,000 to $781,000 in recent years, according to the Health Department.
The Title X funding is a major financial support for Vermont’s 12 Planned Parenthood locations, Leriche said.
In the most recent year of the program, Planned Parenthood in Vermont received $744,231 in grant funding through the program, according to Leriche.
That money has a significant impact on the organization’s ability to offer services at its 12 locations around the state, Leriche said. The system served nearly 19,000 patients in Vermont last year.
A spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, which oversees the grant, declined to respond to questions, citing pending litigation.
However, the Trump administration’s budget proposal for the next fiscal year would fully fund the program. In a release announcing the grant funding in February, an HHS official encouraged “all qualified organizations” to apply, “especially those proposing innovative strategies that would increase the number of clients served and the quality of services provided.”
Mary Beerworth of Vermont Right to Life said there are other organizations in Vermont that could effectively use the Title X money to provide family planning services, such as federally qualified health centers.
Beerworth charged that Planned Parenthood has controlled the funds in Vermont, and questioned how effective the money has been.
“A fresh look at how the money is used and what the result are?” She said. “To me, long overdue.”
The group does not take a position on contraception. However, Beerworth said that the group has concerns about Planned Parenthood receiving the federal funding because the clinics also offer abortion services.
“Them getting that kind of money, to us, leads to more abortion,” she said.
Title X grant funding does not pay for abortion services. By law, federal money cannot go to pay for abortions, Leriche said.
Leriche said she sees the Title X change as a part of a broader “full on full frontal attack” on health services for women under the Trump administration.
“It does feel like a war on women,” Leriche said.
The administration is said to be considering another change to Title X, which would bar the money from going to medical providers that discuss abortion as an option with patients.
“It is going in an ideological direction and away from health care and towards politics,” Leriche said.
This post was updated with comments from the Vermont Department of Health at 12:37 p.m. on May 8.