In a blow to anti-abortion advocates, the 2019 state budget Gov. Rick Snyder signed into law Thursday won't shift federal money for pregnancy prevention and family planning services away from Planned Parenthood.
The budget approved by the Legislature included language that would have moved federal Title X money for family planning services to health clinics and county health departments that do not provide abortions.
"The new language would have made it impossible for us to provide Title X services in any county where there was another non-abortion provider," said Ruth Lednicer, a spokeswoman for Planned Parenthood of Michigan.
Already, state law requires that the money first be distributed to health care providers that do not offer abortions. Planned Parenthood of Michigan shares in the Title X money, but gets second dibs, receiving about 40% of its funding from Title X or Medicaid. Yet it says it provides care for 65% of the state's Title X patients.
“We thank Governor Snyder for his action today," said Lori Carpentier, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood of Michigan. "As he responds to the Legislature’s attempt to strategically prohibit Planned Parenthood’s Title X participation county by county across Michigan, it is clear that he recognizes the importance of access to comprehensive reproductive care for Michiganders and the role Planned Parenthood plays in providing that care."
Right to Life of Michigan was disappointed by the news Thursday, saying the language in the new budget would have fortified a law that's been on the books since 2002, but hasn't been fully enforced.
"We disagree with Governor Snyder’s opinion," said Chris Gast, director of education/communication for Right to Life of Michigan. "Our state law is clear that abortion providers should not be first in line for family planning funding. The budget simply provides instructions for the state to finally follow the law. We’re looking into our options on this moving forward."
Snyder told reporters: “We did a legal review of that, and it’s not enforceable, because it is trying to change another statute that pre-exists."
He said the language inserted into the budget by the Legislature would violate a constitutional provision that says if lawmakers want to amend a law, they have to amend that actual law, not just reference the law they are wanting to change in another bill, such as a budget bill.
In some parts of the state, if the governor would have allowed the budget provision to go through, it would have left only the county health departments offering family planning and pregnancy services to the poorest residents, those who qualify for Title X funding.
Emmet County would have been one of those places. Only Planned Parenthood and the Health Department of Northwest Michigan, which has oversight in four counties —Emmet, Charlevoix, Otsego and Anterim — serve residents who qualify for Title X funds.
If Planned Parenthood would have been pulled out of the mix, it would have been hard on residents, said Carrie Field, public information officer for the Northwest Michigan Health Department.
"We have such a provider shortage in northern Michigan, any time we lose any kind of providers, it’s something to be concerned about," she said. "Our Health Department would continue to fulfill our mission to serve the residents of Emmet County and provide the services needed, but the fewer providers there are, the bigger problem.
"In Emmet County, there is no public transportation system. We’re half an hour from the nearest Title X provider. Things like that can be a major hurdle for families. Also, the Health Department doesn’t regularly provide evening hours, whereas the local Planned Parenthood does.
"We would, if needed, expand our staff and offer more hours of family planning, but it’s always better to have multiple providers who can provide more options, open at different days and different times."
And in other parts of the state, there would be no health care provider at all offering family planning and pregnancy prevention, said Ruth Lednicer, a spokeswoman for Planned Parenthood of Michigan.
Thursday's decision, Carpentier said, ensures continued reproductive health care for thousands of people in the state.
"I like to remind people that family planning and access to reproductive healthcare is working in this country," Carpentier said. "The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services just published a report that says we’re at an all-time low for teen pregnancy. And for abortions, we're at the lowest rate since 1973. And we celebrate that. It does show the success.
"This is what we want. We have good evidence that this is exactly what we ought to be doing."
Contact Kristen Jordan Shamus: 313-222-5997 or kshamus@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @kristenshamus. Staff writer Paul Egan contributed to this story.
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