22 Democrat-led states sue Trump administration for Planned Parenthood defunding

Twenty-two states plus the District of Columbia have filed a lawsuit over the federal defunding of Planned Parenthood, using bogus claims to argue that defunding America’s abortion giant will “cripple” state health care systems and ‘devastate’ Americans.

Key Takeaways:

• Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro joins multiple other states and D.C. in filing suit against the Trump administration (Department of Health & Human Services and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid) over the provision defunding elective abortion providers from receiving federal Medicaid dollars in the so-called “Big, Beautiful Bill.”

• The lawsuit focuses solely on the defunding of Planned Parenthood, even referring to other elective abortion providers impacted by the provision as “collateral damage.”

• The lawsuit asserts that the provision was designed to punish Planned Parenthood “for advocating for abortion access.”

• Even Planned Parenthood affiliates that no longer provide abortions assist clients in obtaining abortions from other affiliates.

• The states claim defunding Planned Parenthood will cripple state healthcare ecosystems through Planned Parenthood facility closures, yet Planned Parenthood began closing facilities and shifting to telehealth years ago.

• While Congress voted to defund abortion providers and Trump signed the bill into law, it has not been in effect since that time because an Obama-appointed district judge has blocked it. Therefore, closures cannot be blamed on the defunding provision.

The Backstory:

On July 4, President Trump signed the reconciliation bill, partially defunding businesses that commit elective abortions for one year — including America’s abortion giant, Planned Parenthood. The bill prohibits such businesses from receiving federal Medicaid reimbursements for one year unless they stop committing elective induced abortions.

Planned Parenthood immediately filed a lawsuit in a Boston federal court, and District Court Judge Indira Talwani, an Obama appointee, blocked the provision. The Center for Reproductive Rights followed that up with another lawsuit on behalf of the Maine Family Planning abortion chain, challenging the provision.

The Details:

Now, 22 abortion-supporting states plus the District of Columbia (including the governor of one state) have also filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration — in the same federal court as Planned Parenthood’s own lawsuit — to secure federal taxpayer funding for Planned Parenthood.

Plaintiffs in the lawsuit are Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro along with attorneys general from these states plus the District of Columbia (D.C.): California, Connecticut, Colorado, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, and Wisconsin.

The lawsuit alleges that the Trump administration defunded Planned Parenthood in a targeted attack based on the group’s pro-abortion advocacy, and it makes a host of other arguments that fall flat.

Claim #1: The defunding is due to abortion advocacy.

The lawsuit claims (emphasis added), “The Defund Provision is a stand-alone provision that eliminates the use of federal funds for any health care obtained at Planned Parenthood health centers. Congress specifically designed the Defund Provision to target and punish PPFA and the Planned Parenthood health centers for advocating for abortion access.”

The provision does not “punish” Planned Parenthood for “advocating for abortion access,” but states that family planning entities which commit elective abortions (not for rape/incest, threat to mother’s life/health) cannot receive federal Medicaid funding. Advocacy in favor of abortion access (or free speech) is not at issue in the case, according to the Department of Health and Human Services, which stated that it is action — not speech — that is impacted by the defunding provision.

Even Planned Parenthood health centers and affiliates that no longer offer abortion themselves do more than simply “advocate” for abortion access; they refer abortion seekers directly to other Planned Parenthood centers that do provide abortions, and to resources like AbortionFinder.org — with which Planned Parenthood itself is a “partner,” and which also refers women to other Planned Parenthood abortion facilities outside of states that restrict abortion:

AbortionFinder.org “Partners” include Planned Parenthood

Planned Parenthood website: Abortion “banned in Texas” but helps residents get abortions elsewhere

PP of Greater Texas refers to AbortionFinder.org (Partnered with PP)

PP South Texas will “help connect” clients to abortion outside Texas

In other words, funneling funds to “feeder” Planned Parenthood affiliates and centers no longer offering abortions directly is still supporting abortion within the Planned Parenthood organization.

Claim #2: Defunding will ‘cripple’ states’ medical healthcare ecosystems.

The lawsuit continues, “Congress has also forced the States to harm themselves, by either 1) crippling the States’ medical healthcare ecosystems as Planned Parenthood health centers close or reduce hours and services, thereby increasing the States’ long-term medical care costs or 2) using the States’ own funds to keep those health centers operating—and thereby foregoing matching federal funds.”

Some things to note:

1. Planned Parenthood has been shuttering its centers and consolidating its services for years.

Early this year, in abortion-friendly Illinois, the corporation closed four facilities and encouraged clients to obtain services via its PP Direct app. Planned Parenthood affiliates have been closing or merging in various states while the company begins to put more of its eggs into the telehealth basket, so to speak.

A January press release from Planned Parenthood stated, “PPIL is planning on expanding appointment availability and access at the Champaign, Peoria, Springfield, and Roseland health centers as well as expanding virtual options via telehealth appointments and the PPDirect app to minimize patient disruption.”

This news came just a month after Planned Parenthood of Illinois’ CEO Jennifer Welch resigned after nearly a decade. Shortly after her resignation, abortionist Colleen McNicholas, medical director of the mega-center in Fairview Heights, Illinois (who formerly led the St. Louis Planned Parenthood — one of the most dangerous abortion businesses in the U.S.) also resigned.

As previously reported by Live Action News, Planned Parenthood in Illinois saw a “’47% increase in overall abortion care patients and an unprecedented number of out-of-state patients’” but that “amazingly just isn’t enough to sustain its business, despite the fact that PP of Illinois’ most recent annual report claims that ‘In FY23, Illinois saw more out-of-state abortion patients than any other state in the country.’ The affiliate ended fiscal year 2023 with more than $10 million in excess revenue.”

It makes sense to close facilities within affiliates financially in the red — like Planned Parenthood Southwest Ohio Region, Planned Parenthood New England, and Planned Parenthood Mar Monte — but it is even closing facilities in affiliates with millions in excess revenue.

2. The defunding has not even begun due to Judge Talwani’s decision to block it, so how could it be causing the Planned Parenthood closings that have happened and are currently happening?

As Live Action Research Fellow Carole Novielli pointed out, “While Planned Parenthood shutters facilities and blames it on the defunding in the ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ — which is not in effect and has been blocked by a judge — is it actually experiencing a crisis, or is it manufacturing one to gain money and power?”

She added:

Planned Parenthood had already chosen to move toward a more virtual business model in order to remain solvent, yet it has disingenuously chosen to blame federal Medicaid defunding for its facility closures and staff layoffs.

Restructuring, closures, and even the expansion of its telehealth program to ALL of its affiliates began long before any discussion of federal defunding.

Claim #3: States will have to dip into their own funding to keep Planned Parenthood locations open.

There is nothing that says states must support Planned Parenthood locations — they can simply choose to do so. They also have the right to defund Planned Parenthood from their own state Medicaid programs, according to a recent Supreme Court decision.

Claim #4: Defunding will have ‘devastating consequences’ for citizens.

The lawsuit states, “… the Defund Provision denies access to health centers that provide essential, lifesaving care, such as cancer screening and prevention, testing and treatment for sexually transmitted infections (STI), and family planning services, all in the name of retribution for PPFA and Planned Parenthood health centers’ political advocacy. And the result is devasting [sic] consequences for those who will be denied care in the Plaintiff States, as well as negative impacts to the Plaintiff States themselves.”

The “essential, lifesaving care” the plaintiffs speak of, such as cancer screening, STI testing and treatment, and so-called ‘family planning’ services, have been dropping dramatically over the year at Planned Parenthood locations across the country, according to the organization’s own annual reports. Client numbers have also plummeted.

As explained by Novielli, “The number of clients seen by Planned Parenthood has been steadily declining.” Since 2006, it has “experienced a nearly 33% decrease in clients from a record high of 3.1M in 2006.”

Planned Parenthood’s 2023-2024 annual report revealed major declines in services in just one year, including:

• Contraceptive services: Down just over 1%

• STI testing/treatment: Down 11%

• Overall cancer screenings: Down 8%

• Breast screenings: Down 10%

• Pap tests: Down 12%

Meanwhile, abortions were up to a record high of over 402,000, an increase of 2.5% from the previous year, and taxpayer funding was up to $792.2 million, a 13% ($93 million) jump from the year before.

But the lawsuit also notes, “… the Defund Provision also incidentally sweeps in a couple of additional healthcare entities who provide abortion care. These entities are just collateral damage.”

This actually appears to be an admission that Planned Parenthood’s business model is based around abortion.

Medicaid funds cannot be used for abortions

Medicaid funds cannot be used to directly pay for abortions themselves. However, when the finances of a business are linked — as Planned Parenthood’s abortion and health care services are linked — that money is fungible — meaning money that goes to Planned Parenthood is used to prop up the company’s staff, operating costs, etc., whether the facility or affiliate commits abortions, refers for abortions, or sells abortion pills virtually.

The Bottom Line:

The lawsuit is a desperate attempt to keep taxpayer money in Planned Parenthood’s pockets even as it has been shutting down its own centers, losing clients, decreasing its legitimate health care services, and switching its business to telehealth. Polling shows that the majority of Americans oppose taxpayer funding of abortion. A 2025 Knights of Columbus/Marist poll found that 57% of American adults “oppose” or “strongly oppose” tax dollars paying for abortions.

“For years, Americans have been forced to subsidize the killing of innocent children and the exploitation of vulnerable women,” said Live Action founder and president Lila Rose in a statement. “Planned Parenthood is the nation’s largest abortion chain, ending over 400,000 lives annually while masking their business as healthcare. This defunding victory is a crucial step toward ending that injustice.”

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