Trump administration efforts to defund Planned Parenthood will also cut Medicaid payments to a network of clinics that serve low-income patients in southeastern Mass. Health Imperatives, a nonprofit provider of reproductive health care and a wide variety of other services, learned this week that it is also affected.
The Trump administration's effort to defund Planned Parenthood will also cut Medicaid payments to a network of clinics that serve low-income patients in southeastern Mass. Health Imperatives, a nonprofit provider of reproductive health care and a wide variety of other services, learned this week that it is also affected.
The organization operates seven clinics that serve about 10,000 patients. Health Imperatives CEO Julia Kehoe said the funding cuts are the result of a new federal law that does not allow certain clinics to offer abortions while receiving federal funding. “This is punishing organizations that provide abortion by not allowing us to bill for all the other health services we provide," said Kehoe. While abortion care and family planning represent less than half of all care at Health Imperatives, federal Medicaid officials said,that the organization meets another threshold that now disqualifies it from Medicaid payments: It’s an abortion provider that receives more than $800,000 in Medicaid reimbursements a year. The criteria was established in a voluminous RepublicanHealth Imperatives is one of only three nationwide providers affected by the effort to curb access to abortions. The others are Planned Parenthood and Maine Family Planning. Both Planned Parenthood and the group in Maine have sued the Trump administration to have their Medicaid funding restored. A federal judge has ordered the government to resume Medicaid funding for Planned Parenthood while its case continues. About 70% of Health Imperatives’ patients are on Medicaid or uninsured — roughly 7,000 people, according to the nonprofit. Kehoe said she expects to lose $1.8 mil through September 2026, when the law that includes this provision expires. Kehoe said Health Imperatives will continue providing medication abortions, and make adjustments to operate without Medicaid funding. “That might mean we would have fewer clinics or fewer sessions,” she said. “It would not mean that we wouldn’t continue to provide free and low cost health care for the people we serve.”Health imperatives is considering legal action and talking to Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey's administration about state funding to supplement the Medicaid gap.to offset Medicaid losses Planned Parenthood might face. It’s unclear whether state lawmakers will seek state funds to help Health Imperatives cover Medicaid patients. Health Imperatives provides other services including addiction treatment, sexual assault counseling, nutrition programs and transgender care. It also offers health exams, cancer screening and shelter for survivors of domestic violence and human trafficking. “We serve communities with some of the highest poverty rates in the state and the highest wealth gaps in the state,” said Kehoe. “So the need for free or low cost health care is absolutely essential.”
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Planned Parenthood Sues Trump Administration Over Planned 'defunding'Planned Parenthood sued the Trump administration on Monday over a provision in President Donald Trump's sweeping domestic policy bill that would prevent its health centers...
Read more »
Planned Parenthood Sues Trump Admin over Defunding in ‘Big, Beautiful Bill’Source of breaking news and analysis, insightful commentary and original reporting, curated and written specifically for the new generation of independent and conservative thinkers.
Read more »
Planned Parenthood sues Trump admin, saying it is targeted by provision in megabillA federal judge has temporarily paused the provision from going into effect.
Read more »
Planned Parenthood Wins Freeze on Trump Admin’s ‘Backdoor Abortion Ban’Trump’s megabill plans to strip federal Medicaid funding from the nonprofit’s health centers that offer abortions.
Read more »
Utah Planned Parenthood sues Trump admin for cutting Medicaid fundingBridger Beal-Cvetko is a reporter for KSL.com. He covers politics, Salt Lake County communities and breaking news. Bridger has worked for the Deseret News and graduated from Utah Valley University.
Read more »
Mass. Planned Parenthood seeks to keep Medicaid funds flowing during legal fightPlanned Parenthood Federation of America and its affiliates in Massachusetts and Utah are fighting to block part of President Donald Trump's tax bill they say is designed to target their clinics.
Read more »