Rep. Veasey and Texas Democrats Urge Obama Administration to Protect Access to Quality Healthcare Providers

Washington, D.C.— Congressman Marc Veasey, TX-33, led the Texas Democratic Delegation letter to Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services' (CMS) Acting Administrator Andrew Slavitt urging the agency to intervene and protect Medicaid beneficiaries' ability to receive care from Planned Parenthood centers in Texas. Recently, Governor Abbott's administration announced their intention to ban Planned Parenthood from participating in the state's Medicaid program.

According to Medicaid's "freedom of choice" provision, states are prohibited from restricting access to qualified healthcare providers. Violating this provision places Texas at risk of losing federal funding for Medicaid. Planned Parenthood is a critical healthcare provider that allows thousands of women to access crucial preventative and reproductive care services, including breast or cervical cancer screenings, HIV tests, and birth control. According to a July 2015 CMS report, approximately 13,000 Texas residents choose Planned Parenthood as their healthcare provider.

"One of my top priorities in Congress is ensuring that low-income residents have access to quality and affordable healthcare. By blocking Planned Parenthood from Texas' Medicaid program, Governor Abbott is once again placing unnecessary obstacles that prevent poor residents in my district and across the state from securing the healthcare services they need," Congressman Veasey said. "Instead of creating unnecessary obstacles to quality healthcare, federal and state officials should be working together to ensure residents have access to the resources they need to live healthy lives regardless of zip code or income."

A copy of the letter is found below.

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December 8, 2015

Andrew Slavitt
Acting Administrator, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
Department of Health and Human Services
Hubert H. Humphrey Building, Room 445-G
200 Independence Avenue, SW
Washington, DC 20201

Dear Mr. Slavitt:

As members of the Texas delegation, we are deeply concerned by Texas Governor Greg Abbott's recent decision to terminate Planned Parenthood from the Texas Medicaid Program.

As you know, Medicaid provides much needed health coverage for low-income families, pregnant women, parents of dependent children, and individuals with disabilities. Currently, over four million Texans are utilizing this program, with approximately 13,000 receiving care from Planned Parenthood centers. If the Abbott administration moves forward with plans to end contracts with Planned Parenthood, it will have extremely harmful effects for this population, but will be particularly damaging for low-income women.

The current state of healthcare delivery in Texas is troubling. Even after reforms brought by the passage of the Affordable Care Act, through which 1.2 million Texans have signed up for health insurance via the federally-facilitated marketplace, Texas still leads the country in uninsured residents. Despite mounting evidence of the merits of doing so, Texas continues to refuse to expand Medicaid, leaving over 948,000 Texans without health care coverage. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, this political posturing has caused an increase in healthcare costs of 6.9 percent, which is placed on the shoulders of Texas taxpayers. Removing a qualified provider from the Medicaid program would only further restrict access to care and could cause costs to rise even further, which is why we request swift federal action.

Despite our strong opposition and documented harmful impact on Texas women, the state has continued to deny women access to reproductive health care. Just a few months ago, the legislature passed a budget measure to exclude Planned Parenthood and similar providers from participating in a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) breast and cervical cancer screening program—cutting thousands of women off from their regular cancer screenings. Unfortunately, this callous decision was just another move in a long line of attacks on women's health. In 2011, Governor Rick Perry banned Planned Parenthood from the Texas Women's Health Program, resulting in the loss of significant federal support for the program. The consequences of this have reverberated throughout the state. According to state reports, 30,000 fewer women received care and Medicaid claims decreased by 26 percent. These results cannot be repeated.

According to federal statute, the Medicaid program provides special protections for beneficiaries' access to family planning. Previously, in 2011, CMS rightfully intervened to protect beneficiary access—refusing to approve Texas's new policy for Medicaid, which violated federal law. Non-compliance with Medicaid law places Texas at risk of losing more federal funds for the program. Given that this would only exacerbate Texas' dismal healthcare outlook, we respectfully request that your department explore all options available at the federal level to swiftly rectify this issue.

While we are aware three additional states—Alabama, Arkansas, and Louisiana— made efforts to cut Planned Parenthood out of their states' Medicaid programs and were blocked from doing so in federal court, we fear the time-consuming process of litigation is a luxury that Texas low-income women cannot afford. Of the 38 Planned Parenthood centers in the state of Texas, 18 are in a rural or medically underserved area. For the sake of Texas women and families and low-income residents, we urge you to work with us to quickly resolve this issue and defend Texas Medicaid beneficiaries against these unlawful state actions in order to continue expanding access to care for all Texans.

We look forward to your prompt response on this issue.

Sincerely,