ICYMI: Senator Murray Statement on House Republicans’ Bill to Defund Planned Parenthood, Slash Medicaid
KFF Explainer: How Will the 2025 Budget Reconciliation Affect the ACA, Medicaid, and the Uninsured Rate?
***WATCH PRESS CONFERENCE HERE***
Washington, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senators Patty Murray (D-WA), a senior member and former Chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, Maria Cantwell (D-WA), and Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) joined Planned Parenthood Action Fund President Alexis McGill Johnson and Planned Parenthood advocates in holding a press conference on the Republicans’ partisan reconciliation bill that includes provisions to “defund” Planned Parenthood and make the largest-ever cut to Medicaid in history.
Republicans’ reconciliation bill, which only requires a simple majority to pass in each chamber of Congress, would result in at least 13.7 million people losing health insurance by 2034, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO)—this figure is a result of Republican cuts to Medicaid combined with Republicans’ refusal to extend Affordable Care Act tax credits and the Trump administration’s sabotage of the ACA marketplace. CBO estimates that the provision in House Republicans’ legislation defunding Planned Parenthood would increase the deficit by $300 million.
“Republicans are gearing [up] to kick more than 8.6 million people off their health insurance, and while they are moving heaven and earth to extend tax cuts for the richest people on the planet, they are not so much as lifting a finger to save the health plan tax credits for working families—something that will push yet another 4 million people off their insurance… Because the brutal reality is that Republicans are not just taking away people’s health coverage, they also want to shut the doors on one of the biggest health care providers in the country. They want to defund Planned Parenthood,” said Senator Murray.“About three in four people say they oppose defunding Planned Parenthood health centers. But Republicans do not care—they need to appease their far-right, anti-choice fringe. Now this is going to hurt their own constituents, seeing as one in three women have been to a Planned Parenthood health center for care. But Republicans don’t care—after all, billionaire tax cuts won’t pay for themselves! Although the irony is, in this case, defunding Planned Parenthood would actually cost our country more money in the long term. CBO estimated yesterday that one provision in House Republicans’ bill would actually increase the deficit by $300 million dollars! And, defunding Planned Parenthood will cut off millions of patients from basic health care like cancer screenings, pap tests, birth control. But Republicans just don’t care—whatever Donald Trump wants, comes first for them. Well, I want everyone to know, Democrats do care. And we are not going to let Republicans blow past all the warning signs. Saving people’s access to basic health care—saving Planned Parenthood—is just too important.”
One in three women have been to a Planned Parenthood health center for care and for many people, Planned Parenthood health centers are their only source of health care. Planned Parenthood is more popular than any elected official or party, and nearly three-quarters of voters, including more than half of Trump voters, oppose Congress taking away funds from Planned Parenthood health centers for providing birth control, wellness exams, and cancer screenings.
“Make no mistake: The House’s reconciliation bill is targeting Planned Parenthood. By moving full steam ahead to push a dangerously unpopular agenda, House Republicans have shown they aren’t concerned about their constituents or cutting costs. This effort to ‘defund’ Planned Parenthood will threaten Americans’ health and futures, and leave a gap in care no other provider can fill. We cannot allow these lawmakers to play politics with health care. Planned Parenthood Action Fund is showing up every day with reproductive freedom champions like Sen. Patty Murray until we defeat this outrageous attack,” said Alexis McGill Johnson, President, Planned Parenthood Action Fund.
“In the State of Washington, Planned Parenthood serves about 100,000 patients annually. So that just tells you, where are those 100,000 people going to go if you don’t have Medicaid as a reimbursement mechanism? About half of those patients rely on Medicaid,” Senator Cantwell said. “Small communities like Pullman, Washington, and other parts of Eastern Washington — where there are no other choices to deliver this kind of care — you’re asking people then to either do without care that might tell us something about a very pressing health care condition, or make you have to give up job time, or drive miles and miles and miles and miles, just to get the care you deserve.”
“Plain and simple: Republicans are putting health care further out of reach for Americans, all because they need to give tax handouts to their rich friends. Planned Parenthood is a health care provider – they do cancer screenings, regular checkups, and so much more, but Republicans refuse to accept that and would rather try to score political points, so they are going to take that essential health care away from American families. It’s wrong and we are going to fight it,” said Senator Baldwin.
Senator Murray is a longtime leader in the fight to protect and expand access to reproductive health care and abortion rights and is widely credited with holding the line against any budget deal that would cut funding for Planned Parenthood in 2011 and leading the fight to uphold President Obama’s policy requiring insurers to cover birth control as part of the Affordable Care Act. Murray has led Congressional efforts to fight back after the Supreme Court’s disastrous decision overturning Roe v. Wade, introducing more than a dozen pieces of legislation to protect reproductive rights from further attacks, protect providers, and help ensure women get the care they need; Murray has led efforts to push for passage of these bills on the floor multiple times. Last year, on the anniversary of Roe v. Wade, Murray led her colleagues in hosting a “State of Abortion Rights” briefing with women who have suffered firsthand from Republican abortion bans, and last June, she chaired a HELP Committee hearing titled “The Assault on Women’s Freedoms: How Abortion Bans Have Created a Health Care Nightmare Across America.” Murray helped lead efforts to force Republicans on the record on votes to protect access to contraception and access to IVF (twice), and led her colleagues in raising the alarm about the threat a second Trump administration poses to reproductive rights and abortion access in every state, as outlined in Project 2025.
Senator Murray’s remarks, as delivered, are below and HERE:
“Well, thank you all so much for joining us. We are here to raise the alarm as Republicans are now moving heaven and earth to gut health care in this country.
“You know the saying ‘women and children first?’ Well for Republicans, billionaires go first—and women and children go overboard.
“That’s essentially the principle they are writing into their reconciliation bill right now.
“Despite all the warnings from families across the country—despite warnings from themselves, Republicans are gearing [up] to kick more than 8.6 million people off their health insurance.
“And while they are moving heaven and earth to extend tax cuts for the richest people on the planet, they are not so much as lifting a finger to save the health plan tax credits for working families, something that will push yet another 4 million people off their insurance.
“But it gets worse—much worse—and that’s what I want to remind everyone here today now.
“Because the brutal reality is that Republicans are not just taking away people’s health coverage, they also want to shut the doors on one of the biggest health care providers in our country.
“They want to defund Planned Parenthood.
“That is wildly unpopular—about three in four people say they oppose defunding Planned Parenthood health centers. But Republicans do not care—they need to appease their far-right, anti-choice fringe.
“Now this is going to hurt their own constituents, seeing as one in three women have been to a Planned Parenthood health center for care. But Republicans don’t care—after all, billionaire tax cuts won’t pay for themselves!
“Although the irony is, in this case, defunding Planned Parenthood would actually cost our country more money in the long term. CBO estimated yesterday that one provision in House Republicans’ bill would actually increase the deficit by $300 million dollars!
“And, defunding Planned Parenthood will cut off millions of patients from basic health care like cancer screenings, pap tests, birth control. But Republicans just don’t care—whatever Donald Trump wants, comes first.
“Well I want everyone to know, Democrats do care. And we are not going to let Republicans blow past all the warning signs. Saving people’s access to basic health care—saving Planned Parenthood—is just too important.
“We don’t have to guess at the stakes here—we already know from experience. We have seen exactly what has happened when Republican states have defunded Planned Parenthood: health care outcomes—worse, fewer patients receive care.
“The fact of the matter is, if Republicans get their way—if they succeed in shutting the doors of Planned Parenthood clinics across the country—millions of women will have nowhere else to turn.
“After all, two-thirds of Planned Parenthood health centers are in rural and medically underserved areas—places where there’s already a shortage of clinics and health care professionals. And for a lot of these patients, Planned Parenthood is literally the only provider in reach and in budget. They literally can’t afford to lose this care.
“So, we are not going to stand by as Republicans try to cut off this lifeline, just so they can cut a massive check to billionaires like Trump and Elon Musk.
“We are here today to put a bright and burning spotlight on the full extent of the destruction Republicans are planning. And to lift up the voices Republicans are most afraid of—the patients who they are trying to cut off from health care.”
###
