Planned Parenthood received nearly $2 billion in federal funds, pandemic loans in three years

Planned Parenthood affiliates raked in nearly $2 billion in federal funds from 2019-21, including millions in forgiven pandemic loans, even though Republicans contend that the nation’s largest abortion provider should have been ineligible for the small-business program.

The report released Tuesday by the Government Accountability Office found that Planned Parenthood collected $1.78 billion, or an average of $592 million per year, in federal funds during the three-year period that covered the COVID-19 pandemic.

Most of the funding ($1.53 billion) came from Medicare, Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program reimbursements, while grants and cooperative agreements made up $148 million, according to the report requested by Sen. Marsha Blackburn, Tennessee Republican, and Rep. Chris Smith, New Jersey Republican.

Ms. Blackburn called it “appalling that big abortion providers are continuing to receive billions of dollars in federal taxpayer funding.”

What further galled Republicans is that Planned Parenthood affiliates collected $90.4 million from the 2020 CARES Act’s Paycheck Protection Program, despite its language saying that the forgivable loans were only for businesses and nonprofits with 500 or fewer employees.

“While small businesses struggled to make ends meet during the pandemic, Planned Parenthood illegally siphoned over $90 million from the Paycheck Protection Program, specifically designed to help our mom-and-pop shops keep their doors open,” Ms. Blackburn said in a statement.

We now know that nearly $2 BILLION in American taxpayer dollars has been funneled to big abortion from FY19-21.

This is unconscionable. pic.twitter.com/GfeDHVfKwR

— Sen. Marsha Blackburn (@MarshaBlackburn) December 12, 2023

Republicans have long held that the Hyde Amendment should prevent Planned Parenthood from receiving federal funds, while the organization has countered that its Medicare and Medicaid reimbursements are for medical services other than abortion.

Mr. Smith said that the $90 million “could have gone to struggling small businesses, many of which were forced to close.”

“Federal taxpayer dollars should not be funneled to big abortion corporations like Planned Parenthood, which has killed over 9.3 million unborn children since 1970, including 1.11 million between 2019-2021,” Mr. Smith said. “This money would have been better spent helping the businesses that were forced to close or providing comprehensive medical support for both women and children.”

Other abortion providers receiving federal funds from 2019-21 included the International Planned Parenthood Federation ($2.03 million) and MSI Reproductive Choices ($1.35 million), as well as four domestic regional providers ($107.74 million), the report said.

During the Trump administration, the Small Business Administration ruled that Planned Parenthood clinics were ineligible for PPP loans and sought to claw back the funding, citing their status as affiliates of Planned Parenthood of America, which employs an estimated 16,000 people nationwide.

Under the Biden administration, however, Planned Parenthood affiliates were deemed eligible for PPP loans, much to the frustration of Republicans.

“This is a big deal,” Sen. Rand Paul, Kentucky Republican, told the SBA administrator at a March 2021 hearing. “The previous administration said this was unlawful and told them to return the money. Your administration is now giving them the money. This is a legal question.”

In September 2022, the SBA Office of Inspector General said affiliates of three national nonprofit organizations — Planned Parenthood, Goodwill and the YMCA — qualified for loans under the SBA’s rules on what constitutes affiliation.

“We found it is not likely that affiliation existed with its member organizations,” said the OIG report. “All three national organizations we reviewed have delegated autonomy to its members and recognized its members in its bylaws as independent organizations.”

The SBA added: “We found no affiliation between the national organizations and the loan recipients.”

The PPP loans “are fully forgivable for payroll and certain other eligible costs if certain conditions are met.” The entire amount of the Planned Parenthood loans had been forgiven as of May 1, the GAO report said.

“Our analysis of Small Business Administration data found that between April 3, 2020, and May 31, 2021, 38 Planned Parenthood affiliates received 44 Paycheck Protection Program loans ranging in amounts from approximately $500,000 to $10 million,” said the GAO.