Pro-abortion group sues HHS over Title X funding

The National Family Planning and Reproductive Health Association (NFPRHA) and the Family Health Council of Central Pennsylvania (FHCCP) have filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), alleging that the agency has politicized eligibility for Title X funding.

Key Takeaways:

• In April, HHS announced its guidelines for recipients of 2027 Title X funding.

• The guidelines require that organizations do not commit or refer for abortions.

• The National Family Planning and Reproductive Health Association filed a lawsuit against these guidelines, alleging that the rules violate Title X.

The Backstory:

Under rules announced by HHS in April, facilities that commit or refer for abortion would be ineligible to receive Title X funding.

"None of the funds appropriated under this title shall be used in programs where abortion is a method of family planning," the guidelines state. "The Hyde Amendment expressly prohibits the use of federal funds administered by HHS to pay for elective abortion."

The notice continues (emphases added):

We expect recipients to demonstrate how their Title X projects maintain strict separation from prohibited activities and contribute to broader HHS efforts to safeguard life-affirming, lawful, and ethical program delivery. Key strategies include, but are not limited to, implementing robust financial and programmatic safeguards; providing clear guidance to staff and subrecipients on Hyde requirements; and establishing monitoring processes that ensure ongoing compliance among staff and subrecipients.

The Details:

NFPRHA and FHCCP have filed a lawsuit against the HHS rules. NFPRHA is a network organization that represents state and local health departments, clinics, and Planned Parenthood centers that offer "sexual and reproductive health care" to low-income and uninsured individuals. It also works with organizations that fund abortion groups.

According to its mission statement, "NFPRHA advances and elevates the importance of family planning in the nation's health care system and promotes and supports the work of family planning providers and administrators..." It aims to ensure that "all people can access ... family planning and sexual health care..."

FHCCP is a non-profit organization that supports a network of health centers in Pennsylvania. It does not commit abortions; however, it does partner with Planned Parenthood. In 2026, it was awarded $2.7 million in funding, according to the HHS.

The American Civil Liberties Union is representing NFPRHA and FHCCP, arguing that HHS is violating the intent of Title X. According to the complaint, NFPRHA believes the requirements are a political move that violate the purpose of Title X to "offer a broad range of acceptable and effective family planning methods and services."

"We believe that the funding announcement is designed to favor the kind of providers the administration would rather see in the program," said Clare Coleman, president and CEO of NFPRHA.

The complaint alleges, "The [funding notice] enables defendants to pick winners and losers based on political alignment, as opposed to merit and the ability to provide high-quality Title X services. This is not how federal grants should be awarded, and, specifically, this is not how Congress instructed defendants to make Title X grants."

Why It Matters:

The first Trump administration put in place something known as the "Protect Life Rule," requiring a separation both fiscally and physically between a provider's abortion business from its family planning business. However, the current Trump administration has not yet restored the Protect Life Rule. In early June, a coalition of 159 lawmakers sent a letter to HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., urging the Trump administration to restore the rule.

The current rule differs from the Protect Life Rule.

Most Americans do not support taxpayer-funded abortion, and a 2025 poll found that most Americans support cutting taxpayer funding specifically to Planned Parenthood.

Sixty percent (60%) of registered voters said they agreed with the idea of eliminating Planned Parenthood’s public funding.

While taxpayer dollars are not legally allowed to directly pay for abortions, with some exceptions, money is fungible. The same facilities and staff used to dispense birth control may be used to maintain the abortion side of a business.

Meanwhile, there are 13,540 Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) that provide a wide range of comprehensive health services for women and do not commit abortions.

The Bottom Line:

Kelsey Hazzard, president of Secular Pro-Life, shared an article about the dangers of a “PP monopoly on family planning” in which she pointed out how Planned Parenthood often takes money away from community health centers.

"With so many more locations, FQHCs and health departments are in a better position to help a greater number of people access contraception," she wrote. "But they’ve barely gotten an opportunity to show it, because Planned Parenthood has historically gotten the money, and keeps suing to claim entitlement to FQHC and health department family planning funds."