Planned Parenthood on Medicaid chopping block, SNAP work requirements moving in the House

The Legislature may be poised to copy federal law and ban Medicaid payments to Planned Parenthood.

The House Health Care Facilities & Systems Subcommittee voted along partisan lines to green-light HB 693, sponsored by Rep. Mike Redondo, a Miami Republican who is in line to be Speaker of the House following the 2030 elections.

Specific to Planned Parenthood, the bill would amend Florida’s Medicaid statutes to prevent payment to any “prohibited entity” in federal law. The one-year ban on Medicaid payment affects providers that offer abortion services such as Planned Parenthood.

Michelle Grimsley Shindano, Planned Parenthood Florida Action’s director of policy and government affairs, testified against the measure in committee. And, in a prepared statement issued following the meeting, said:

“Floridians with Medicaid would be permanently blocked from accessing Planned Parenthood health centers for life-saving screenings, birth control, STI testing and treatment, and overall preventive care. In addition, not being able to accept Medicaid payments in the long-term could force reductions in staffing, hours, and services.”

The Senate Health Policy is scheduled to consider SB 1758 Monday. The Senate bill does not contain the ban on Medicaid payments to a “prohibited entity.”

The House bill would expand the groups of people who receive supplemental nutrition assistance program (SNAP) benefits who must work or enroll in education and training programs as required by the federal law.

Specifically, the bill would require able-bodied adults without dependents up to age 64 to work or enroll in education and training programs to receive SNAP benefits. Existing law doesn’t require SNAP beneficiaries to work once they hit age 59.

The bill would change the work requirement exemption requirements for adults with children to limit the exemptions to households with minor children under age 14. A legislative staff analysis estimates the changes, being made to comply with the federal One Big Beautiful Bill Act, would require an additional 79,600 adults to work or enroll in education and training to maintain their food security benefits.

The bill would direct the Department of Children and Families (DCF), which administers SNAP for the state, to require veterans, former foster youths ages 24 and under, and people without homes to work. The legislative analysis shows the state estimates another 10,595 able-bodied adults would be required to work or be training for work.

The work requirement changes already are being implemented by the Gov. Ron DeSantis administration, the analysis notes.

The bill directs the DCF to bring its Medicaid SNAP error rate down to less than 6% to avoid what could be steep financial penalties. Based on its 2024 error rate of 15.1%, Florida would have had to pay nearly $1 billion to cover the costs of the food it makes available through the program.

That figure is on top of the additional $50 million the state will be required to contribute to help cover the administrative costs of the program, another change under the federal law.

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Reporting by Christine Sexton. Florida Phoenix is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Florida Phoenix maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Michael Moline for questions: [email protected].