Illinois is bracing for more patients after Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin paused abortions last week and it comes as local clinics face potential Medicaid cuts from President Trump spending bill organizations like Planned Parenthood of Illinois say they're preparing to meet that increased demand despite federal funding uncertainties.

Joining us with more is Planned Parenthood of Illinois, new president and CEO Adrian White Plains.

Welcome.

Thank you for joining Thank you for having me.

It's a pleasure.

So you've been on the job for about 5 minutes few It's been uncertain time, obviously for reproductive rights, but also for your organization.

It had been without a permanent leader for 7 months before you were appointed to the position.

What is it like taking over at this current time?

Yeah, I mean, health care overall was already up for the last several years.

>> In a state of change.

And as we moved into 2025, under the new administration.

Many of the challenges in healthcare were exacerbated by changes coverage payment eligibility as well as research levels of information.

So I stepped in as a long term, healthy executive to Planned Parenthood.

Under the auspices of the World and change.

But it's wonderful.

And the reason that mayor is because it's an Illinois, if you the commitment to reproductive health in the state of Illinois, from the policymakers, through the delivery of clinical care and and health systems has always been phenomenal.

With the commitment to the patients and to access.

So that's the environment by which I look to rebuild.

Planned Parenthood, Wisconsin pausing its abortion services just last week.

You another abortion service providers are expecting to see an increase in.

>> Patients seeking abortion services.

What have you all seen so far?

You know, really the announcement came within the past 10 days this week alone.

We've seen a doubling of the abortion cases that we you certainly receive from Wisconsin.

In the meantime, we're working very closely with Planned Parenthood, Wisconsin, to make sure and help patients that need abortion care in our safe haven state.

So that aligning them with navigators that can help them with travel and gas expenses and food as well as getting them to the care that require.

And to be clear, a doubling of patients just from Wisconsin in the last 10 days.

Yes, yes, yes, we we received actually ever since the Dobbs decision in 2022, we had a 47% increase in the state of Illinois at Planned Parenthood in abortion care.

People coming from 46 states.

So we've learned how to build resilience and and expansion to accommodate need.

And we're going to be there for Wisconsin as So it to that point, you know, Illinois, as you said, it's been a haven for reproductive care, particularly abortion access nationally.

The Guttmacher Institute showing that nearly one out of 4 out of state abortions in the country were in Illinois alone in 2024. about 35,000 out of state patients traveling to Illinois last year.

That's accounting for 39% of all abortions in the state.

What does this increase in demand mean for access to services?

fortunately, Planned Parenthood recognizes that abortion care and reproductive services are an essential component of comprehensive health care.

So we're designed to look providing access to the full array of reproductive health services.

So with our 13 clinics around the state, we utilize and and flex our clinicians and our staff to make sure that we are able to accommodate where it becomes challenging, particularly challenging is when you then also take away or alter the insurance payment in the payment structure so that we don't have the financial resources to be able to maintain that expansion.

But right now we have the capacity and we are working to accommodate the Wisconsin and in the states meet, OK?

So on the subject of insurance because last month an appeals court allowed for the Trump administration to cut Medicaid reimbursements for abortion providers as part of the spending bill that passed in July that we all know a federal court today.

Also just denying the government's request for a stay of that case due to the government shutdown.

Over 40% of Planned Parenthood of Illinois patients.

That's nearly 30,000 people rely on Medicaid to access services.

How do these cuts impact your patients?

And to be clear, Medicaid never paid for abortion.

Medicaid.

Matt is how fed federal Medicaid does not pay for services in the state of Illinois.

Medicaid does actually cover abortion in the state as part of their legislative process and budgeting.

But that's host to a lesser degree.

But the when you think about the Medicaid patients has 40% of our activities.

Our commitment is to continue even with these fluctuations to welcome and accommodate every patient regardless of their ability to pay.

The challenge is on us as providers to make sure that we are filling every gap financially to keep to meet that need.

And I'm not going to tell you that it's easy, but we're committed to to it.

The status of that case.

What what can you tell us as it's it's still sort of working its way through the courts.

What do you think will happen there?

What's next?

I'm not optimistic.

I think we as we look at our challenges today and the state, the way that the executive order was put in place only for one year.

We there's nothing that is telling us that it won't be extended.

In addition, you have another change H R One, the bill for that is going to change eligibility of Medicaid coming in next year.

So there's going to continue to be challenges and we'll continue to work with the state.

Are donors as well as our local delivery models.

To try to find solutions to long-term access to the care that teens, women and all deserve.

That is a substantial financial loss, of course, for your organization can philanthropy and the state.

How can you fill that gap?

It's a combination of finding the resources as well as appropriate operational alignment and efficiencies and also looking at and making sure that you're leveraging delivery models and delivery systems like Telehealth Digital Health.

Others said or not as facility based as they are.

But these challenges of finding cost-effective health care, our experience, not just by Planned Parenthood, but by everyone who has particularly population tough underserved patients.

All of that said, you know, what is the path forward for your organization as here, you know, addressing these these federal challenges, the path forward is based on our history.

And the reality is Planned Parenthood existed 400 years.

It has really turned the generations for women.

It was in my lifetime that they actually allowed contraception to be available to all women.

It cannot go away access to reproductive health care, evidence-based, quality reproductive health care is an essential part of health care that is deserving of all.

So we have no choice but to find the solutions to ensure and protect everybody long into the future.

And we will create a termite fans.

It's a good place to leave it.

Brand new to the position of Planned Parenthood of President CEO.

I know it's.

>> It's been in your family