Elon Musk, the leader of the new Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), wrote in November that he wanted to end taxpayer funding for Planned Parenthood. Musk is right. Planned Parenthood kills nearly 400,000 unborn children in our nation every year. It should not receive a penny from American taxpayers.
Planned Parenthood’s finances tell the story. In its 2024 annual report, the abortion giant boasted record-high abortion numbers and over $2.9 billion in net assets. It receives $700 million annually in taxpayer funding—roughly $1.9 million per day—and its focus is not on providing health care but on promoting abortion. Since 2000, taxpayer funding has surged by 245 percent, while the number of abortions at Planned Parenthood have doubled—at the same time, cancer screenings and prenatal care have declined.
In the past decade (from 2012-2013 to 2022-2023), as annual taxpayer funding to Planned Parenthood rose over 29 percent, from $540.6 million to nearly $700 million, abortions conducted by Planned Parenthood also increased over 20 percent, from 327,166 to 392,715—the highest number of abortions ever reported by the corporation.
In addition, over the past 10 years, its profits ballooned from $58.2 million to $178.6 million—an increase of more than 200 percent.
Continuing to fund Planned Parenthood with tax dollars is not just fiscal irresponsibility—it is a human-rights catastrophe. Live Action, my organization, has uncovered many instances of negligence in reporting rape and sexual abuse and complicity in aiding sex traffickers in the exploitation of young girls. Investigations reveal a pattern of failure to report the sexual abuse of minors, enabling predators to keep illegally exploiting vulnerable girls and perpetuating abortions.
Undercover footage has also exposed Planned Parenthood staff negotiating the sale of organs and body parts from aborted babies. Planned Parenthood has even been sued over allegations it engaged in Medicaid fraud.
To sustain its operations, Planned Parenthood’s political arm, the Planned Parenthood Action Fund, funnels millions of dollars into campaigns to elect candidates who pledge unwavering support for its agenda—promoting unrestricted abortion at every stage of pregnancy for any reason. In 2024 alone Planned Parenthood political affiliates invested tens of millions of dollars to defeat President Trump.
Nevertheless, taxpayers are forced to subsidize Planned Parenthood, an organization responsible for over 390,000 abortions annually.
States like Texas and Arkansas have proven that defunding Planned Parenthood is possible. Both excluded the abortion giant from Medicaid after finding noncompliance with medical and ethical standards. The federal government must now follow suit. The DOGE leadership and new administration have a chance to act boldly and redirect taxpayer funds to the 14,000 community health centers that outnumber Planned Parenthood facilities 20 to 1. These centers provide comprehensive, life-affirming care, from cancer screenings to prenatal and postpartum services, without destroying human life. This change would be a victory for taxpayers, ensuring government resources are being used to benefit the people, not a progressive political interest group.
The federal government must take immediate action. The first step must be to disqualify organizations that perform abortions from all federal health care spending and issue guidance affirming states’ rights to exclude abortion providers from Medicaid.
The administration should also restore regulations from the first Trump administration that separated Title X funds from abortion activities. And it should actively enforce the Weldon Amendment and withdraw funds from states mandating abortion coverage.
These steps would align federal spending with existing law and the values of the American people. Federal subsidies to the abortion industry must end, and the network of destruction must be replaced with health care providers that genuinely serve women and families.
This is more than a fiscal issue—it is a moral imperative. Planned Parenthood now performs, on average, 1,076 abortions every day. That’s nearly 45 every hour, or one every 80 seconds. Planned Parenthood does not plan parenthood; it ends parenthood. Defunding it would send an unmistakable message: America stands for life, for accountability, and for the vulnerable.
President Trump has taken several important pro-life actions since he took the oath of office. These include pardoning pro-life prisoners unjustly prosecuted by the Biden administration, reinstating the Mexico City Policy to ensure no taxpayer dollars fund abortion overseas, and rescinding a Biden-era policy that had the military pay for service members’ abortions. Defunding Planned Parenthood is the logical next step—not just for fiscal responsibility but for justice. The sanctity of life, fiscal responsibility, and the promise of true health care solutions demand nothing less.
Lila Rose is the founder & president of Live Action, the educational leader of the pro-life movement, dedicated to ending abortion and building a culture of life.
The views expressed in this article are the writer’s own.
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