Planned Parenthood says Trump's megabill targets thousands of Virginians' health care

Devlin Epding, The Virginian-Pilot on Jul 15, 2025

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NORFOLK, Va. — Thousands of Virginians use Medicaid at Planned Parenthood health centers across the state for reproductive health care services every year. But a provision in President Donald Trump’s “One Big, Beautiful Bill Act” could cut off those people from accessing services using federal support.

The organization serves roughly 25,000 people per year in the commonwealth, according to Planned Parenthood Advocates of Virginia spokesperson RaeAnn Pickett. That includes nearly 800 people who use Medicaid for Planned Parenthood services in Virginia every month.

With the potential cuts, Planned Parenthood Advocates of Virginia Executive Director Jamie Lockhart said that’s subject to change.

“Some people may choose to pay out of pocket to access care. Some will look to find other providers,” Lockhart said. “We know that there are no other providers who can fill the gap if the defunding of Planned Parenthood is allowed to stand. We also know that some people will just delay or not receive the health care that they need.”

Trump’s multitrillion-dollar tax breaks and spending cuts bill, which was signed into law earlier this month, included a provision championed by anti-abortion groups that would block federal funding toward Planned Parenthood for up to one year. The “defund provision” bars Planned Parenthood from accepting Medicaid for any reproductive health care services, and is the latest in a slew of attacks against the organization just this year.

But whether the cuts will take effect is now a question before a federal court. Planned Parenthood is currently suing the Trump administration over the defund provision, and a federal judge has issued a two-week temporary restraining order against the policy’s implementation. A hearing in the case is set for July 21. The Department of Justice has since condemned the order.

Federal law already bars Medicaid funding to go toward abortions, except in very narrow circumstances like cases of rape or incest. Instead, Lockhart said the policy would take life-saving health care away from Virginians who need care the most.

“This move is a direct attack on the health care that tens of thousands of Virginians rely on,” Lockhart said. “We know that Planned Parenthood isn’t just a provider. It’s a cornerstone of Virginia’s health care system, especially for low-income patients in rural communities.”

Virginia Planned Parenthood health centers conducted more than 12,000 tests for chlamydia in 2023, which led to 673 positive results and treatment, according to Lockhart. They also performed 705 cervical cancer screenings, which detected 53 abnormal results that required further testing.

Roughly 200 Planned Parenthood health centers are at risk of closing across the country if the cuts take effect, Lockhart said. In Virginia, Planned Parenthood is set to lose $1.35 million annually in public health reimbursements, equating to roughly 10,600 visits being eliminated and 5,700 patients being impacted.

That’s in a state that saw roughly 5,500 more clinician-provided abortions last year compared to the year before, a 16% increase, largely driven by out-of-state patients traveling from states with more restrictive abortion bans. Virginia is the last state in the Southeast without a ban on abortions after six or 12 weeks of pregnancy.

Planned Parenthood health centers in Virginia have already lost funding through other means. Planned Parenthood health centers in Richmond, Hampton and Virginia Beach — three of six in the state — lost $1 million in federal funding after Trump froze Title X grants in March, according to Virginia Mercury reporting, resulting in 11,000 patients paying higher costs for services. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled states were immune from lawsuits if they excluded Planned Parenthood from its Medicaid program in June.

“This is not about harming Planned Parenthood,” Lockhart said. “This is about harming patients. This is about people not having access to the health care that they need and deserve.”

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