LOS ANGELES — As the Trump administration advances an effort to gut federal funding for Planned Parenthood, elected officials rallied July 21 in defense of the organization that provides sexual and reproductive health care for more than 1.1 million patients across the nation.
Rep. Sydney Kamlager-Dove, D-Los Angeles, led a news conference downtown alongside other elected officials to sound the alarm on what they believe could be a public health crisis if the federal government defunds Planned Parenthood.
Earlier this month, President Donald Trump signed a budget reconciliation bill that detailed a provision to “defund” Planned Parenthood health centers nationwide.
The policy would deny Planned Parenthood and its affiliated organizations Medicaid funding for one year for non-abortion health services.
In response, Planned Parenthood Federation of America filed a lawsuit challenging that policy.
Under a federal law, known as the Hyde Amendment, federal funds are prohibited to pay for abortion services with few exceptions. But the provision would prevent health care providers that offer abortion services and who received more than $800,000 in Medicaid funding in 2023 from receiving similar dollars for other kinds of care for one year.
A judge issued a temporary restraining order on behalf of Planned Parenthood, though the order is set to expire next week.
Kamlager-Dove, co-chair of the Planned Parenthood L.A. Board, emphasized the federal policy is an attack on reproductive rights.
“Because they couldn’t eradicate abortion through Dobbs, they snuck a backdoor abortion ban into their Big Ugly Bill to target providers and threaten their ability to offer care,” Kamlager-Dove said during the news conference. “Make no mistake, California will remain a beacon of reproductive freedom. We will not be intimidated, we will not be silenced, and we will continue to fight — for Planned Parenthood, for providers, and for every patient who depends on them.”
L.A. County Supervisor Holly Mitchell noted that stripping Medicaid funding from Planned Parenthood doesn’t just threaten clinics, but also people.
“Forcing clinics to shut down is a direct assault on the health and well-being of Black and brown communities, low-income families, and others for whom Planned Parenthood is their only source of health care,” Mitchell said.
Planned Parenthood receives reimbursement for services provided to patients. By losing federal funding, health centers will not be able to provide services to patients who use Medicaid for health coverage.
In California, more than 80% of patients rely on Medi-Cal, the state Medicaid program, which means many of them may lose access to birth control and cancer screenings among other services.
Barbara Ferrer, director of the county’s Department of Public Health, highlighted how Planned Parenthood offers 24 health centers in Los Angeles that provide for communities that have long been underserved.
“By singling out Planned Parenthood, the federal government is disrupting the delivery of high-quality medicine and the primacy of the provider-patient relationship for thousands of people across Los Angeles,” Ferrer said. “Sadly, this short-sited, politically motivated move by the federal government will deepen longstanding health inequities and threaten the well-being of so many.”
Sue Dunlap, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Los Angeles, emphasized that the loss of federal funding would be a disaster for public health, most notably for young people, and women and families who rely on the organization.
“My message to every Planned Parenthood Los Angeles patient is this: Our days stay open, and care continues,” Dunlap said. “We’ve been here to serve this community for 60 years — and we have no intention of going anywhere.”
The Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America organization, a network of more than one million pro-life Americans nationwide, previously commended the Trump administration’s One Big Beautiful Act. The group, a leading pro-life political group, described Planned Parenthood as desperate in its attempt to block the provision through the courts.
“As Planned Parenthood doubles down on lawfare and abortion politics, they prove exactly why the One Big Beautiful Bill is a historic victory for the people, stopping half a billion dollars in forced taxpayer funding of the corrupt abortion industry for the first time,” Katie Daniel, director of legal affairs and policy counsel for SBA Pro-Life America, said in a statement July 7.
“With far more accessible and comprehensive community health centers outnumbering Planned Parenthoods 15 to 1, women have real choices for their health care needs.”
