To resolve a big fight over Planned Parenthood funding, Congress has revamped how money to fight the Zika virus will be allocated in a government funding bill announced Thursday.
For months, Democrats had refused to approve a GOP Zika funding bill as it included a pot of Social Service Block Grant funding that may have been off-limits to Planned Parenthood clinics because of how the legislation was worded.
After lawmakers couldn’t come to terms, they agreed to strike that funding pool completely from the bill. Instead, the legislation provides about $95 million through alternate channels — the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, states themselves and a funding pot that goes to clinics in Puerto Rico but has never been awarded to Planned Parenthood centers there.
The Zika funding, which provides $1.1 billion for response efforts, is part of a measure to keep the government funded through Dec. 9. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has scheduled a vote on the legislation next week, although Senate Democrats may block it due to ongoing disputes over including funding for Flint, Mich.
Throughout the summer, Democrats had accused Republicans of trying to withhold Zika funding from Planned Parenthood clinics. The measure didn’t explicitly ban Planned Parenthood centers from getting the funding, but worded it in such a way that it was not clear whether they could apply for it.
In the funding bill announced Thursday, the measure removes the pot of funding in dispute. And it doesn’t explicity ban Planned Parenthood from getting any of the money, a move that some conservatives have pushed for but would be a non-starter with Democrats.
Instead, it includes provisions that Republicans said would make it less likely that Planned Parenthood would get any of the emergency funds to help with anti-Zika efforts by distributing money to accounts and agencies least likely to partner with the women’s health and abortion provider.
Democrats had stressed they wanted a Zika funding bill to include dollars for two Planned Parenthood clinics in Puerto Rico, where the virus is spreading rapidly. The bill announced Thursday by Senate Republicans would provide $80 million for efforts on the island. The funds would be distributed by the territory’s Department of Health, which doesn’t provide Medicaid dollars to Planned Parenthood clinics there.
The bill also reiterates the Hyde Amendment’s restrictions on taxpayer dollars being used for abortions.
Both parties appeared to have agreed to the changes to the Zika funding language, but now other disputes are tying up the overall bill to keep the government funded past Sept. 30.
“The agreement expands access to healthcare services in areas most affected by the Zika virus,” said Sen. Roy Blunt, R-Mo. “It provides no direct funding or grants to Planned Parenthood or Profamilias, and the Hyde Amendment is reiterated in the text of the bill.”
