MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin resumed scheduling abortions Monday after a nearly month-long pause due to federal Medicaid funding cuts in President Donald Trump’s tax and spending bill that took effect in early October.
Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin said it was able to resume scheduling abortions starting at noon 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 funding.
The organization said it abandoned its designation as an “essential community provider” as defined by the Affordable Care Act. Removing the designation will not result in changes in the cost of abortions or other services or affect the organization’s funding, said Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin President and CEO Tanya Atkinson.
“At this point, in all of our research and analysis, we really shouldn’t see a big impact on patient access,” he said. “If giving up on this ultimately affects our results, then we will have to understand what the way forward is.”
A national fight over abortion funding
Abortion funding has come under attack across the United States, particularly for members of Planned Parenthood, the largest provider. The abortion landscape has changed frequently since the US Supreme Court ruling in 2022 that allowed states to ban abortion. Currently, 12 states do not allow it at any stage of pregnancy, with limited exceptions, and four more prohibit it after about six weeks of gestation.
Related videos
Planned Parenthood has warned that about half of its clinics that provide abortions could close nationwide due to a ban in the new federal law on Medicaid funding to Planned Parenthood for non-abortion services.
Receive weekly health news
Receive the latest medical news and health information every Sunday.
Wisconsin, where abortion is legal but the Republican-controlled Legislature has passed numerous laws limiting access, was the only state where Planned Parenthood suspended all abortions because of the new federal law, Atkinson said.
Because of the complexities and varieties of state abortion laws, Planned Parenthood affiliates are responding to the new federal law in a variety of ways, Atkinson said. In Arizona, for example, Planned Parenthood stopped accepting Medicaid but continued to offer abortions.
Impact on Wisconsin abortion clinics
In Wisconsin, suspending abortions for the past 26 days meant that women who would normally go to clinics in the southeast corner of the state had to look for other options, including traveling to Chicago, which is a three-hour drive from Planned Parenthood facilities.
Affiliated Medical Services and Care for All also offer abortions at Milwaukee clinics.
Atkinson said it was “very, very difficult to say” how many women were affected by the pause in services. She did not have figures on how many women who wanted abortions since the pause went into effect have had to seek services elsewhere.
Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin serves about 50,000 people, and about 60% of them are covered by Medicaid, the organization said.
Given those numbers, the priority was to find a way to continue receiving Medicaid funding and eliminate the “Essential Community Provider” status that provided the gateway, Atkinson said.
Wisconsin is part of a multistate federal lawsuit challenging the law’s provision. A federal appeals court said in September that the government could suspend payments while a court challenge to the provision moves forward.
Ramifications for Medicaid
Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin cited a Sept. 29 court filing on behalf of U.S. Health and Human Services that said family planning organizations could continue billing Medicaid if they gave up their tax-exempt status or “essential community provider” designation.
By renouncing that designation, it no longer meets the definition of a “prohibited entity” under federal law and can continue to receive federal Medicaid funds, the organization said. Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin will not give up its tax-exempt status.
The “essential community provider” designation was originally granted to organizations to help make it easier for them to be considered in-network for billing with private health insurers, Planned Parenthood said.
Atkinson called it a “nuanced provision” of the law and does not anticipate that waiving it will affect Planned Parenthood’s ability to continue providing abortions and other services.
Planned Parenthood offers a wide range of services including cancer screenings and testing and treatment for sexually transmitted infections. Federal Medicaid money no longer covered abortion, but enrollees relied on Medicaid to stay afloat. Non-abortion services are expected to expand in light of the new law.
Planned Parenthood performed 3,727 abortions in Wisconsin between Oct. 1, 2023, and Sept. 30, 2024, the group said.
© 2025 The Canadian Press
