The House passed a resolution Thursday re-opening the door for states to block Planned Parenthood from receiving some federal funds.
The measure, which passed 230-188, would reverse a last-minute rule from the Obama administration that said conservative states can’t block the women’s health and abortion provider from receiving family planning dollars under the Title X program.
More than a dozen states have sought to block Title X funding from Planned Parenthood clinics. The funds can’t be used for abortions under federal law, but conservatives say health providers offering abortions shouldn’t receive any federal reimbursements because money is fungible.
“We are simply voting today to affirm the rights of states to fund healthcare providers that best suit their needs without fear of reprisal from their own federal government,” said Rep. Diane Black, R-Tenn.
Black later said that the bill isn’t an issue about abortion, but about state’s rights.
“With this resolution, we are letting states care for their citizens the best way they know,” she said on the House floor.
Some courts have upheld the ability of states to block family planning funds from Planned Parenthood. But those laws may have run up against a hard legal wall had Obama’s rule remained on the books.
The measure passed Thursday is effectively a thumbs-up from Congress to Republican-led states and may encourage more states to transfer Title X reimbursements from Planned Parenthood clinics to community health centers and other health providers.
Republicans passed the resolution using its authority under the Congressional Review Act, which allows Congress to overturn a rule from the executive branch that was finalized in the past 60 days.
Planned Parenthood health centers receive about $500 million annually from the federal government. About 75 percent of the funds come via Medicaid reimbursements and the rest come through the Title X program.
Democrats protested, saying the measure is just the latest effort by Republicans to roll back abortion rights.
“Repealing this rule is a serious problem,” said Rep. Diana DeGette, D-Colo. “This [decision] should be made by patients and their doctors, not by bureacrats in Washington.”
Other Democrats were incredulous at the vote.
“We are debating contraception in 2017. Astonishing,” said Rep. Jan Schakowsky, D-Ill. “Let’s be clear, if you want to reduce the number of abortions, you need to ensure everyone has access to family planning.”
