Planned Parenthood published its latest annual report right after Mother’s Day, revealing that abortions have reached a record high for the 2023-2024 period. Alongside this, government funding has also increased.
It’s been nearly three years since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, leading many states to adopt stricter pro-life laws, yet Planned Parenthood appears to be thriving. There’s potential for Congress and President Trump to intervene, but the question remains: will they?
The report brings several key points to light.
In the medical data section, Planned Parenthood reported:
- 402,230 abortions, marking an increase from last year’s 392,715, which is the highest number recorded.
- 367,594 breast cancer screenings and Pap tests, down from 410,272 the previous year.
- 129,594 preventive care visits, which is roughly in line with last year’s figures of 129,216.
- 2,148 adoption referrals, an increase from 1,721 last year but still half of the referrals made five years ago.
- 2,223,680 contraceptive services, a drop from the previous total of 2,250,913.
- 2.08 million patients, a slight rise from last year’s 2.05 million, though down considerably from 2.4 million five years prior.
Notably, for every adoption referral made last year, Planned Parenthood conducted 187 abortions.
The organization emphasizes a new telehealth service deployed in 42 states and Washington, D.C., enabling women to access abortion pills without an in-person doctor visit to check for potential complications.
For a second consecutive year, Planned Parenthood has highlighted its assistance to women from pro-life states seeking abortions elsewhere. Over the past year, they have reportedly helped more than 100,000 women, with more than 12,500 women receiving an average of $275 in travel expenses, totaling over $3.4 million for travel related to abortions.
As for gender services like cross-sex hormones, over 430 clinics provide these services. Out of 49 affiliates, 23 offer telehealth options, although Planned Parenthood hasn’t detailed the exact number of gender-specific services, burying this data in a catch-all “other” category.
When gender services were first mentioned in that “other category” a decade ago, 8,153 services were recorded. This year, that number skyrocketed to 77,858. It’s unclear if these discrepancies stem from different reporting methods or if something else is at play.
What we do understand is that Planned Parenthood is “the second-largest provider of hormone therapy” in the U.S., as per its own admission. An investigation by the Manhattan Institute indicated that in 2023 alone, nearly 40,000 individuals sought cross-sex hormones through Planned Parenthood, with about 40% of them aged between 18 and 22.
On the financial side, Planned Parenthood disclosed:
- $2.522 billion in net assets, a slight increase from the previous year’s $2.517 billion.
- $792.2 million in government funding, up from $699.3 million the year before.
- More than $2 billion in overall revenue, nearly consistent with the prior year’s figures.
- $27.4 million in excess revenue, calculated by subtracting total expenses from total revenue, down significantly from last year’s $178.6 million.
- $684.1 million in private contributions and bequests, a decrease from $997.5 million the preceding year.
Clearly, when it comes to abortion and gender services, Planned Parenthood is thriving, even amid a wave of pro-life restrictions enacted in roughly half the states in 2022. The rise of dangerous abortion pills is largely attributed to the Obama and Biden administrations’ negligence in maintaining long-standing safety standards. It’s become increasingly simple to obtain abortion pills online and via mail without an in-person doctor visit, despite significant health risks.
It’s interesting to note that Planned Parenthood began expanding its gender services around the time new regulations for abortion drugs were being enacted. As fewer women opted for surgical abortions and more chose pills, Planned Parenthood adapted and broadened its scope.
With lesser surgical abortions, which tend to be more costly, and a rise in pharmaceutical options, there might be concerns about profit margins, but the introduction of new gender services offers a fresh demographic, allowing access to more clients.
Pro-life states must persist in their fight for life, but there are certainly steps that federal policymakers could take as well. Currently, a reconciliation bill in Congress contains provisions aimed at cutting Medicaid funding for Planned Parenthood, which constitutes its primary source of government revenue.
Trump has the opportunity to re-establish a regulation for the Title X Family Planning Program, which mandates grantees to separate their Title X activities from abortive services and not refer Title X clients for abortions. In his first term, this policy was in effect, leading Planned Parenthood to withdraw from receiving over $60 million in funding—a case of what could be termed self-defunding.
Planned Parenthood doesn’t deserve taxpayer money—funding should go to clinics that genuinely deliver health care. In fact, new studies indicate that community health centers outnumber Planned Parenthood facilities by a ratio of 15 to 1.
A pro-life Congress and administration could potentially transform the landscape of women’s health care. The question is, will they make that happen?
