Dive Brief:
- The House Judiciary Committee began hearings regarding Planned Parenthood after videos released by an anti-abortion group, the Center for Medical Progress, depicted staff discussing fetal tissue donation. Planned Parenthood said those filmed did not do anything illegal and the videos were heavily edited.
- Legislation (S.1881) introduced last month in response to the videos was rejected by the Senate. If passed, the bill would have cut $500 million in federal funding to the organization and distributed the funds to other women's health programs.
- The hearing will include testimony from Priscilla Smith, director of Yale Law School's Program for the Study of Reproductive Justice, who will speak against the videos. Additional testimony will be given by James Bopp, general counsel for the National Right to Life. Bopp will state the videos show Planned Parenthood broke several federal laws on fetal tissue.
Dive Insight:
Three additional Congressional committees are also scheduled to hold hearings on Planned Parenthood, according to the AP/San Diego Union-Tribune.
According to The Hill, conservative lawmakers are deciding on several proposed measures that target the organization. These range from a bill proposed by Rep. Diane Black (R-Tenn) to suspend all federal funding for a year while the organization is under investigation. Rep. Renee Elmers (R-NC) proposed to cut all Title X funding and redistribute it to other women's health centers. The measure would affect about $60 million of the $500 million Planned Parenthood receives in federal funding - mostly from Medicaid, according to The Hill.
In addition, 28 conservative House members have signed a letter stating they will not support any government funding for the organization. A similar letter is being circulated in the Senate by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas).