This commentary is by Nicole Clegg, interim CEO of Planned Parenthood of Northern New England.
Planned Parenthood of Northern New England is facing a financial crisis unlike any we have experienced in our organization’s nearly 60-year history — and it could jeopardize our ability to provide care in the future.
Because of a significantly broken health care system and continued political attacks, PPNNE is estimating a deficit of $8.6 million over the next three years. This deficit is driven by systemic failures within the health care industry, which has for decades undervalued the care we provide and the people we provide care to. The pandemic, insufficient reimbursement rates and the national loss of abortion rights snowballed to create an unsustainable reality.
We’ve all read the stories: the health care system in Vermont is at a breaking point. Health care providers ranging from substance use disorder clinics to nursing homes are closing, the majority of Vermont’s hospitals are operating in negative margins, staff are being laid off and open positions are not being filled, all while insurance companies are announcing record-setting rate hikes.
Providers across the state, including PPNNE, are being asked to do more with less, all while facing the impacts of flooding, inflation, staffing shortages and reimbursement rates that aren’t keeping pace with the true cost to provide care. To top it all off, Vermont Medicaid reimbursements were overpaid for years by the state’s vendor, and now our organization and many others are bearing the costs of these mistakes.
But for PPNNE, the expenses don’t end there. We must also devote time and resources to fighting back against political attacks and investing in increased security measures related to anti-abortion rhetoric and hate.
By and large, the Green Mountain State is a haven for accessing the full range of sexual and reproductive health care, including abortion. We thank Vermont lawmakers and voters for having the foresight and ambition to work together to make Vermont one of the most protective states in the country. However, that hasn’t been enough to stop anti-abortion bills from being introduced every legislative session that we must work to defeat. And it also hasn’t been enough to immunize us from harassment and violence. In the past year alone, our health centers have experienced vandalism, stolen property, an increased number of protesters and even a bomb threat.
PPNNE is a vital provider within Vermont’s health care system, serving patients with low incomes, and patients who are uninsured or underinsured with high deductible plans. We are often the only health care provider many of our patients access all year. We don’t turn people away due to an inability to pay.
Without us and the free and discounted health care we provide at 15 health centers across Vermont, Maine and New Hampshire, the most vulnerable people in our communities could
face catastrophic health outcomes. This could include unplanned pregnancies and worsening pregnancy outcomes, higher rates of sexually transmitted infections and HIV, and increased rates of cervical and breast cancers.
In 2022, when faced with similar budget concerns, PPNNE closed six health centers, five of which were in Vermont. These communities, from patients to other health care providers, are still feeling the impact of these closures today. While telehealth is an accessible option for many of our patients it doesn’t fully replace the benefits of having us located within the communities who need us the most.
We are calling on state leaders to not only address these systemic failures that we and so many other providers are facing, but to provide more funding to PPNNE and other safety-net health care organizations so that we can continue to offer this life-changing care.
We are calling on the communities who rely on us for free and discounted care to be a part of the solution we need. If you turned to us at some point in your life for care, understand that we need you like you need us. Get involved. Vote. Volunteer. Advocate. You can visit our website for more information.
And we are calling on our supporters. We know that one of the most salient issues in this election is the future of reproductive rights and freedoms and protecting those rights is only possible if PPNNE can continue to provide care, no matter what.
We truly believe we can get to a more sustainable future and ensure we are here for generations to come, to continue to improve the public health outcomes of our communities. But doing so requires partnership and resources equivalent to the level of care we provide to Vermonters.
PPNNE can’t do this alone.
