2019: Fitzpatrick Voted Against An Amendment To The FY 2020 Minibus
That Prohibited The Convening Of An Ethics Advisory Board On Research
Projects That Use Human Fetal Tissue. In June 2019, Fitzpatrick voted
against an amendment to the FY 2020 minibus that would, according to
Congressional Quarterly, "prohibit use of funds made available by the
bill to convene an ethics advisory board on research grants and projects
that propose the use of human fetal tissue." The vote was on adoption of
the amendment. The House adopted the amendment by a vote of 225-193.
[House Vote 321,
6/13/19; Congressional
Quarterly, 6/13/19;
Congressional Actions, H.Amdt.
338;
Congressional Actions, H.R.
2740]
2017: Fitzpatrick Voted Against The FY 2018 Republican Study Committee
Budget Resolution Which In Part Called For Effectively Defunding Planned
Parenthood. In October 2017, Fitzpatrick voted against a budget
resolution that would in part, according to Congressional Quarterly,
"provide for $2.9 trillion in new budget authority in fiscal 2018. It
would balance the budget by fiscal 2023 by reducing spending by $10.1
trillion over 10 years. It would cap total discretionary spending at
$1.06 trillion for fiscal 2018 and would assume no separate Overseas
Contingency Operations funding for fiscal 2018 or subsequent years and
would incorporate funding related to war or terror into the base defense
account. It would assume repeal of the 2010 health care overhaul and
would convert Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program into
a single block grant program. It would require that off budget programs,
such as Social Security, the U.S. Postal Service, and Fannie Mae and
Freddie Mac, be included in the budget." The underlying legislation was
an FY 2018 House GOP budget resolution. The House rejected the RSC
budget by a vote of 139 to 281. [House Vote 555,
10/5/17; Congressional
Quarterly, 10/5/17; Congressional
Actions, H. Amdt.
455;
Congressional Actions, H. Con. Res.
71]
2017: Fitzpatrick Voted Against The FY 2018 Republican Study Committee
Budget Resolution Which In Part Called For Effectively Defunding Planned
Parenthood. In October 2017, Fitzpatrick voted against a budget
resolution that would in part, according to Congressional Quarterly,
"provide for $2.9 trillion in new budget authority in fiscal 2018. It
would balance the budget by fiscal 2023 by reducing spending by $10.1
trillion over 10 years. It would cap total discretionary spending at
$1.06 trillion for fiscal 2018 and would assume no separate Overseas
Contingency Operations funding for fiscal 2018 or subsequent years and
would incorporate funding related to war or terror into the base defense
account. It would assume repeal of the 2010 health care overhaul and
would convert Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program into
a single block grant program. It would require that off budget programs,
such as Social Security, the U.S. Postal Service, and Fannie Mae and
Freddie Mac, be included in the budget." The underlying legislation was
an FY 2018 House GOP budget resolution. The House rejected the RSC
budget by a vote of 139 to 281. [House Vote 555,
10/5/17; Congressional
Quarterly, 10/5/17; Congressional
Actions, H. Amdt.
455;
Congressional Actions, H. Con. Res.
71]
2017: Fitzpatrick Voted For The House GOP's FY 2018 Omnibus That
Defunded Planned Parenthood. In September 2017, Fitzpatrick voted for
an FY 2018 Omnibus appropriations bill that. According to The Hill, "The
House on Thursday completed its work on the annual appropriations bills
for 2018, ahead of expected negotiations at the end of this year to keep
the government funded. By a vote of 211-198, the House passed a $1.2
trillion package of spending bills to fund wide swaths of the federal
government, ranging from the Department of Homeland Security to the
Environmental Protection Agency. [...] The package included eight new
bills, plus four previously passed appropriations bills that advanced
through the House in July. Regular order for appropriations typically
involved passing each of the bills individually, not in groups of 4 or
8. [...] Together, the bills appropriate $621.5 billion for defense
spending and $511 billion for nondefense discretionary spending. It
also devotes another $87 billion in Overseas Contingency Operation
(OCO) funding, which does not count toward budget cuts. Of that, $75
billion went to defense, $12 billion to nondefense." The vote was on
passage. The House passed the bill by a vote of 211 to 198. The Senate
took no substantive action on the overall legislation. [House Vote 528,
9/14/17; The Hill,
9/14/17;
Congressional Actions, H.R.
3354]
2017: Fitzpatrick Voted Against The American Health Care Act That
Would Have In Part Prohibited Federal Funding To Planned Parenthood.
In May 2017, Fitzpatrick voted against the American Health Care Act
which would have significantly repealed portions of the Affordable Care
Act by cutting Medicaid, cutting taxes on the rich, removing safeguard
for pre-existing conditions and defunding Planned Parenthood. According
to Congressional Quarterly, the legislation would have "prohibit[ed]
federal funding to any entity, such as Planned Parenthood, that performs
abortions and receives more than $350 million a year in Medicaid
funds." The overall legislation would have in part, also according to
Congressional Quarterly, "ma[d]e extensive changes to the 2010 health
care overhaul law, by effectively repealing the individual and employer
mandates as well as most of the taxes that finance the current system.
It would [have], in 2020, convert[ed] Medicaid into a capped
entitlement that would provide[d] fixed federal payments to states and
end[ed] additional federal funding for the 2010 law's joint
federal-state Medicaid expansion. [...] It would [have] allow[ed]
states to receive waivers to exempt insurers from having to provide
certain minimum benefits." The vote was on passage. The House passed the
bill by a vote of 217 to 213. The bill, in modified forms, died in the
Senate. [House Vote 256,
5/4/17; Congressional
Quarterly, 5/4/17; Congressional
Actions, H.R.
1628]
2017: Fitzpatrick Voted To Disapprove A Rule That Would Have
Effectively Withheld Title X Funds To States That Restrict Title X Funds
To Planned Parenthood. In February 2017, Fitzpatrick voted for
disapproving the HHS rule related to Title X funding compliance via the
Congressional Review Act. According to Congressional Quarterly, "This
resolution disapproves the rule issued by the Health and Human Services
Department (HHS) on Dec. 19, 2016, that modifies eligibility
requirements for Title X grants for family planning services to specify
that states and other entities awarding funds cannot prohibit a health
care provider from participating for reasons other than its ability to
provide Title X services (which effectively threatens to withhold Title
X money from states that restrict participation by Planned Parenthood).
The measure provides that the rule (formally titled Compliance With
Title X Requirements by Project Recipients in Selecting Subrecipients)
would have no force or effect." The vote was on the resolution. The
House adopted the legislation by a vote of 230 to 188. The legislation
later became law. [House Vote 99,
2/16/17; Congressional
Quarterly,
2/10/17;
Congressional Actions, H. J. Res.
43]
HHS Rule Required That States Can Only Deny Funding For A Group
Based On Its Ability To Provide Title X Services. According to
Congressional Quarterly, "On Dec. 19, 2016, HHS finalized a rule
modifying eligibility requirements for Title X grants for family
planning services, which specified that no state or other recipient
distributing funds can prohibit an entity from participating and
receiving funds for reasons other than its ability to provide Title
X services. If states or other entities are found to not be in
compliance, HHS could discontinue its funding, subject to
administrative appeals and a recoupment and re-awarding of funds.
The rule effectively threatens to withhold Title X funds from states
that have restrictions against participation by Planned Parenthood.
The final rule became effective on Jan. 18, 2017." [Congressional
Quarterly,
2/10/17]
Some States Have Attempted To Defund A Portion Of Planned
Parenthood Funding By Denying Funds Through Title X. According to
Congressional Quarterly, "Within the past few years, 13 states have
taken actions to restrict participation by certain providers under
the Title X program --- most prominently, Planned Parenthood. HHS
officials in the Obama administration argued that these actions were
motivated by politics and not the provider's ability to provide
Title X services, noting that the restrictions caused limitations in
the geographic distribution of services. Some states have
implemented a tiered approach to distribute Title X funds that gives
preference to comprehensive primary care providers or community
health centers, while others have explicitly prohibited specific
providers from being eligible to receive Title X funds. Litigation
concerning these restrictions has led to inconsistency across states
in how Title X funds are distributed." [Congressional Quarterly,
2/10/17]
Title X Family Planning Is The Only Federal Grant Program
Dedicated To Family Planning; Program Helps About 4 Million People
Annually, Including Through Pregnancy Testing And STD Screening.
According to Congressional Quarterly, "The Title X Family Planning
Program within the Health and Human Services Department (HHS) was
enacted in 1970 as part of the Public Health Service Act and remains
the only federal program focused solely on providing family planning
services. An estimated 4 million individuals each year receive
services through thousands of Title X-funded health centers across
the country, including contraceptive services, pregnancy testing and
counseling, preconception health services, screening for sexually
transmitted diseases and certain cancer screenings." [Congressional
Quarterly,
2/10/17]
Title X Funds Cannot Be Used To Fund Abortion, But Organizations
That Provide Abortion Services Can Receive Funding. According to
Congressional Quarterly, "Current law bars the use of Title X funds
for abortion, but it allows states that receive grants to award
funds to nonprofits and other entities to serve as providers for the
covered family planning services. In some states, Title X service
providers include members of Planned Parenthood Federation of
America Inc., a network of clinics that provide contraception and
preventive health care for women but which is also the largest
provider of abortion services in the nation." [Congressional
Quarterly,
2/10/17]
Planned Parenthood Receives About $60 Million Annually From Title
X Out Of $450 Million Annually From The Federal Government.
According to Congressional Quarterly, "For years, abortion opponents
have been trying to eliminate or restrict federal funding for
Planned Parenthood. The organization receives roughly $450 million
in federal funds each year, with $390 million coming from Medicaid
reimbursements and $60 million coming from Title X."
[Congressional Quarterly,
2/10/17]