GAO Report: Planned Parenthood Received $90 Million in Forgiven PPP Loans During Pandemic

Nearly $2 billion in federal funding went to abortion advocacy groups between 2019 and 2021, according to a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report requested by Republican lawmakers.

Broken down by recipient, abortion giant Planned Parenthood received $1.78 billion, the International Planned Parenthood Federation received $2.03 million, MSI Reproductive Choices received $1.35 million, and four domestic regional abortion providers received $107.74 million, according to the report. The GAO further found that Planned Parenthood affiliates received $90.4 million in forgiven Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“It is appalling that big abortion providers are continuing to receive billions of dollars in federal taxpayer funding. While small businesses struggled to make ends meet during the pandemic, Planned Parenthood illegally siphoned over $90 million from the Paycheck Protection Program, specifically designed to help our mom and pop shops keep their doors open,” alleged Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), one of the lawmakers who originally requested the report.

“The American people want their tax dollars spent responsibly and in line with our nation’s values — not on the Left’s abortion-on-demand agenda. I will never stop fighting to protect the unborn and end taxpayer-funded support for the abortion industry,” Blackburn continued.

While federal law prohibits the federal funding of abortions, it does not limit funding abortion providers. Blackburn, along with Reps. Vicky Hartzler (R-MO) and Chris Smith (R-NJ) led 142 Congressional members in January of 2022 in requesting the GAO produce a report detailing federal funding for abortion advocacy groups covering the fiscal years of 2019 through 2021.

A topline summary of the report compiled by the offices of Smith and Blackburn noted that Congress had intended PPP funds to “assist truly independent small business with less than 500 employees.”

“Pro-life Members had informed the Small Business Administration (SBA) that Planned Parenthood affiliates, with over 16,000 employees nationwide, were ineligible for PPP funding because Planned Parenthood’s corporate office supervises and controls its affiliates, providing considerable funding and support,” the summary reads.

Federal funding to Planned Parenthood can be broken down into three categories: reimbursements from Medicaid, Medicare, and CHIP Reimbursements ($1.53 billion), federal funding in grants and cooperative agreements ($148.5 million), and loans forgiven in the Paycheck Protection Program ($90.41 million).

“Between 2019-2021, Planned Parenthood performed 1.11 million abortions while receiving approximately $1.78 billion in federal funding. This is an average of $592 million federal dollars every year,” the summary notes.

The GAO report further found that the Biden administration’s Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) increased obligations to Planned Parenthood from $5.71 million to $27.06 million between 2021 and 2022 — a 373 percent increase.

The increase came after the Biden administration rescinded a Trump-era rule in 2021 called the Protect Life Rule, which had required all grantees receiving Title X funding to agree not to refer for abortion and to maintain physical and financial separation from abortion providers. Under the rule, Planned Parenthood notably forfeited Title X funding rather than comply. Title X funding had previously been Planned Parenthood’s second largest source of federal funding during the Obama administration.

Katherine Hamilton is a political reporter for Breitbart News. You can follow her on X @thekat_hamilton.