Wisconsin Planned Parenthood resumes offering abortions after a nearly monthlong pause

MADISON Wis AP Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin resumed scheduling abortions on Monday after a nearly monthlong pause due to federal Medicaid funding cuts in President Donald Trump s tax and spending bill that took effect at the beginning of October Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin disclosed it was able to resume scheduling abortions as of noon on Monday because it no longer fits the definition of a prohibited entity under the new federal law that took effect this month and can receive Medicaid funds The organization announced it dropped its designation as an essential neighborhood provider as defined under the Affordable Care Act Dropping the designation will not product in changes to the cost for abortions or other services or affect the organization s funding Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin president and CEO Tanya Atkinson announced At this point in all of our research and analysis we really shouldn t see much of an impact on recipient access she reported If relinquishing this does ultimately impact our bottom line then we will have to understand what that path forward is A national fight over abortion funding Abortion funding has been under attack across the U S particularly for affiliates of Planned Parenthood the biggest provider The abortion landscape has shifting frequently since the U S Supreme Court ruling in that allowed states to ban abortion At present states do not allow it at any stage of pregnancy with limited exceptions and four more ban it after about six weeks gestation Planned Parenthood has warned that about half its clinics that provide abortion could be closed nationwide due to the ban in the new federal law on Medicaid funding for Planned Parenthood for services other than abortion Wisconsin where abortion is legal but the Republican-controlled Legislature has passed numerous laws limiting access was the only state where Planned Parenthood paused all abortions because of the new federal law Atkinson explained Because of the complexities and varieties of state abortion laws Planned Parenthood affiliates are responding to the new federal law in a variety of procedures Atkinson reported In Arizona for example Planned Parenthood stopped accepting Medicaid but continued to provide abortions The move in Wisconsin is clearly aimed at sidestepping the federal law Wisconsin Right to Life declared Planned Parenthood s abortion-first business model underscores why taxpayer funding should never advocacy organizations that make abortion a priority explained Heather Weininger executive director of Wisconsin Right to Life Women in laborious circumstances deserve compassionate life-affirming care the kind of aid the pro-life movement is committed to offering Impact on Wisconsin abortion clinics In Wisconsin pausing abortions for the past days meant that women who would normally go to clinics in the southeastern corner of the state instead had to look for other options including traveling to Chicago which is within a three-hour drive of the Planned Parenthood facilities Affiliated Healthcare Services and Care for All also provide abortions at clinics in Milwaukee Atkinson stated she did it was really really complex to say how plenty of women were affected by the pause in services She did not have numbers on how several women who sought to have an abortion since the pause went into effect had to seek services elsewhere Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin serves about people and about of them are covered by Medicaid the organization revealed Given those numbers the priority was on finding a way to continue receiving Medicaid funding and dropping the Essential Area Provider status provided the gateway Atkinson disclosed Wisconsin is part of a multistate federal lawsuit challenging the provision in the law A federal appeals court in September announced the administration could halt the payments while a court challenge to the provision moves ahead Ramifications for Medicaid Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin cited a Sept court filing on behalf of U S Physical condition and Human Services that declared family planning organizations could continue billing Medicaid if they gave up either their tax-exempt status or the essential society provider designation By giving up that designation it no longer fits the definition of prohibited entity under the federal law and can continue to receive federal Medicaid funds the organization noted Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin is not giving up its tax exempt status The essential public provider designation was originally given to organizations to help make it easier for them to be considered in-network for billing with private vitality insurers Planned Parenthood stated Atkinson called it a nuanced provision of the law and she does not anticipate that giving it up will affect Planned Parenthood s ability to continue providing abortions and other services Planned Parenthood provides a wide range of services including cancer screenings and sexually transmitted infection testing and restoration Federal Medicaid money was already not paying for abortion but affiliates relied on Medicaid to stay afloat Services other than abortion are expected to expand in light of the new law Planned Parenthood performed abortions in Wisconsin between Oct and Sept the group commented