Congress Just Voted to Defund Planned Parenthood for an Eighth Time

House Majority Leader Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) departs the chamber on January 6 after voting to defund Planned Parenthood.J. Scott Applewhite/AP

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On Wednesday afternoon, the House voted to approve a bill that would pull about $450 million in federal funding from Planned Parenthood. The bill—passed by the Senate late in 2015—will now head to President Obama’s desk. This will mark the first time a bill defunding Planned Parenthood has made it to the president’s desk in more than 40 years. This is the eighth time Congress has voted to defund Planned Parenthood in the last year.

Wednesday’s vote reflected the deep partisan divide on these issues: All but three Republicans voted in favor of the bill, and all but one Democrat voted against it. Federal law already prohibits using Medicaid or other federal funds for almost all abortions, so this bill would prevent patients from using their Medicaid coverage at Planned Parenthood for other healthcare services—like cervical cancer screenings, tests for sexually transmitted diseases, or contraceptive services.

Obama has already vowed to veto any legislation that would defund Planned Parenthood, but congressional Republicans are encouraged by the symbolism of sending this bill to the White House. They’re also already planning a veto override vote for later in January. To successfully override a presidential veto, both the Senate and the House would need a two-thirds majority.

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WHO DOESN’T LOVE A POSITIVE STORY—OR TWO?

“Great journalism really does make a difference in this world: it can even save kids.”

That’s what a civil rights lawyer wrote to Julia Lurie, the day after her major investigation into a psychiatric hospital chain that uses foster children as “cash cows” published, letting her know he was using her findings that same day in a hearing to keep a child out of one of the facilities we investigated.

That’s awesome. As is the fact that Julia, who spent a full year reporting this challenging story, promptly heard from a Senate committee that will use her work in their own investigation of Universal Health Services. There’s no doubt her revelations will continue to have a big impact in the months and years to come.

Like another story about Mother Jones’ real-world impact.

This one, a multiyear investigation, published in 2021, exposed conditions in sugar work camps in the Dominican Republic owned by Central Romana—the conglomerate behind brands like C&H and Domino, whose product ends up in our Hershey bars and other sweets. A year ago, the Biden administration banned sugar imports from Central Romana. And just recently, we learned of a previously undisclosed investigation from the Department of Homeland Security, looking into working conditions at Central Romana. How big of a deal is this?

“This could be the first time a corporation would be held criminally liable for forced labor in their own supply chains,” according to a retired special agent we talked to.

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And it is only because Mother Jones is funded primarily by donations from readers that we can mount ambitious, yearlong—or more—investigations like these two stories that are making waves.

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