Planned Parenthood of Central and Western New York will provide patients using Medicaid with care at no cost, now that the federal government is no longer providing reimbursement for its services.
The Trump administration blocked more than 1.1 million patients from using their Medicaid coverage at these health centers for one year. And recently, a federal appeals court upheld that policy.
More than half of the patients at Planned Parenthood of Central and Western New York use Medicaid.
“It's very important to us that our patients are not feeling the brunt of what we feel is very much an ideological political fight on this administration's part,” said Meredith Ouderkirk, director of public affairs for Planned Parenthood of CWNY
Ouderkirk said Planned Parenthood views this ruling as a deliberate attack on their ability to provide health care. But, she added, these attacks on reproductive health are not foreign to the organization.
“We've experienced attacks like this since the beginning of Planned Parenthood's existence, and we are committed to providing care no matter what,” she said.
Medicaid has only covered abortions in extreme cases ever since the Hyde Amendment was enacted in 1976. Officials said the insurance mostly covers “really basic, pivotal forms of health care that people in our communities rely on” like STI testing and treatment, cancer screenings, HPV vaccines, birth control, and other reproductive health services.
“I am really worried about people delaying necessary health screenings or testing for infections, or not being able to seek just the day-to-day care that they rely on Planned Parenthood to provide,” said Dr. Colt Wasserman, chief medical officer of Planned Parenthood CWNY.
“People are going to experience a shortening of their lives because they're denied access to health care at Planned Parenthood,” they said.
Ouderkirk said the consequences of the federal policy will affect everyone, particularly rural areas and communities of color.
“Medicaid is a huge portion of the way that public health goes around,” Ouderkirk said, “So when that is pulled out of the system... it puts them (rural health centers and doctors offices) in a really financially devastating position.”
The nonprofit will be working with donors and supporters to fill funding gaps for at least the next year.
