[Updated: Wed., Sept. 17, 2025, 10:33am]
The Trump administration’s efforts to defund Planned Parenthood appear to be plowing forward despite public pushback. On Thursday, the First District Court of Appeals lifted a lower court’s injunction, clearing the way for the Trump administration to prevent Planned Parenthood patients from using Medicaid insurance.
Effective immediately, California Planned Parenthood health centers, including six on the Central Coast, are blocked from getting paid via federal funds for services they provide through the state’s Medicaid program, Medi-Cal.
For Planned Parenthood California Central Coast (PPCCC), that amounts to $17 million in lost funding — more than half their budget. According to PPCCC, nearly 70 percent of patients on the Central Coast rely on Medi-Cal for coverage, putting them at risk of reduced access to reproductive healthcare.
Nationwide, roughly 200 Planned Parenthood health centers may now be forced to close, according to Alexis McGill Johnson, president of Planned Parenthood Federation of America.
Opponents of the defund claim that it is retaliation against Planned Parenthood for continuing to offer abortion services, and consequently disrupts preventative care services, such as cancer screenings and STI testing, that make up the core of the organization’s medical practice.
Earlier this year, Planned Parenthood California lost around $300 million in federal funding due to a provision in the “One Big Beautiful Bill” act that blocked Medicaid reimbursements for abortion providers. In July, a lower-court judge ordered a preliminary injunction and temporarily revived funding for providers, but the First Circuit’s recent decision dissolved that injunction.
Planned Parenthood is continuing to “fight back with every tool we have against this unjust and politically motivated attack on reproductive health care access in California and other states,” the California Affiliates said in a statement. The battle will continue in court, alongside litigation filed by California’s Attorney General and 21 other states challenging the ruling.
Planned Parenthood Central Coast CEO Jenna Tosh said they are currently using other sources of funding to ensure Central Coast patients can continue to access the “full range of care,” regardless of their circumstances, but the situation is unsustainable. She called on the State of California to provide other resources to fill the gap left by the federal government. Until then, coverage for Medicaid patients hangs in the balance.
“Make no mistake, the fight is not over. We continue to pursue every avenue to ensure patients on the Central Coast can continue to access the care they deserve,” Tosh said. “We want patients, including those who rely on Medi-Cal, to know that our health center doors are open to everyone who needs us.”
Editor’s Note: This story was updated to incorporate comments from Planned Parenthood Central Coast CEO Jenna Tosh and to update the subtitle and to clarify the wording regarding the First District Court of Appeals’ actions.
