Report on Planned Parenthood Sent to Congress

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Report on Planned Parenthood Sent to Congress

Special Report - February 10, 2012
A report submitted to Congress earlier this week by the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) identifies “extensive waste, abuse and potential fraud” involving millions of dollars of federal funding by some Planned Parenthood affiliates in the United States. The ADF report to Congress, which was prepared with help from the Susan B. Anthony List, was submitted on February 6 to Representative Cliff Stearns (R-FL), who is leading a Congressional investigation of Planned Parenthood. “Planned Parenthood’s primary motivation is to take advantage of ‘overbilling’ opportunities to maximize its revenues in complex, well funded federal and state programs that are understaffed and rely on the integrity of the provider for program compliance,” the ADF report states. “Thus, Planned Parenthood’s primary motivation appears not to be to provide quality healthcare to patients who seek family planning services, but rather to enhance its profits.”

The ADF report found evidence of “potential fraud” at nine percent of Planned Parenthood’s 79 affiliates nationwide, according to a fact sheet on the full report. The report details information from 10 “known audits or reviews of Planned Parenthood affiliates” nationwide, specifically one in California, seven in New York state, one in Texas, and one in Washington state. According to ADF, its investigation of these 10 audits found “numerous improper practices resulting in significant Title XIX Medicaid overpayments of nearly $8 million to Planned Parenthood affiliates for family planning and reproductive health services claims.”

The report also identified 38 federal audits of state-level family programs that “found between $88 million and $99 million in overbilling.” Two of these 38 federal audits of state family planning programs “specifically identify Planned Parenthood, and only Planned Parenthood, as the problem in state family planning program overbilling,” according to ADF. The report identifies 12 types of “potential fraud” by Planned Parenthood affiliates, including the following examples:

Instances of “unbundling” (i.e., “billing and being reimbursed by Title XIX agencies for medical and/or other services in conjunction with abortion procedures,” which ADF notes are “ineligible for government reimbursement under federal laws, including the Hyde Amendment.”);
“Dispensing prescription drugs, including oral contraceptives, without an authorized order by a physician or other approved healthcare practitioner.”
“Billing for services, including pregnancy tests, that were not medically necessary.”
“Billing in excess of actual acquisition costs or other statutorily approved cost for contraceptive barrier products, oral contraceptives, and emergency contraceptive Plan B products.”

“Americans deserve to know if their hard-earned tax money is being funneled to groups that are misusing it,” said ADF Litigation Counsel Catherine Foster in a statement. “Planned Parenthood has to play by the same rules as everyone else. It certainly isn’t entitled to a penny of public funds, especially if it is committing Medicaid fraud.”

Related resources:
Komen Reverses Grant Decision - February 3, 2012
Komen Ends Planned Parenthood Grants - February 2, 2012
Congress Investigates Planned Parenthood - October 7, 2011
Planned Parenthood Scrutinized - July 15, 2011
Judge Restores Planned Parenthood Funding - August 23, 2011
Investigating Planned Parenthood- Download mp3 — wma
House Defunds Planned Parenthood - February 22, 2011
Congress Defending Life - February 16, 2011
Majority of Americans Now Pro-Life - May 19, 2009