Congressional House Republican leaders are proposing a budget that would defund health providers who offer abortion services by prohibiting them from participating in Medicaid.
Planned Parenthood of Northern New England said it's the most significant national effort to restrict access to abortion since Roe v. Wade was overturned.
CEO Nicole Clegg said the proposal would also cut off access to essential health care for patients who are enrolled in Medicaid. In Maine, nearly a third of Planned Parenthood's patients are covered under the low income insurance program.
"This is abortion opponents' latest attempt to eliminate abortion in the United States, and it shows they're willing to take away access to affordable birth control, wellness checks, and cancer screenings to do it," Clegg said.
Clegg said abortion services only account for roughly 6% of the care their clinics provide.
The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimates that the proposal to defund abortion providers would actually increase Medicaid spending by $300 million over the next decade. Clegg said the increased costs would result from delayed access to care.
