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House votes to overturn Obama admin regulation blocking states from defunding Planned Parenthood
The Planned Parenthood Central Phoenix Health Center sign is viewed in Phoenix, Ariz. on Feb. 2, 2017. (Laura Segall/AFP/Getty Images)

House votes to overturn Obama admin regulation blocking states from defunding Planned Parenthood

The House of Representatives voted Thursday to rescind an Obama administration regulation blocking states from defunding Planned Parenthood.

TheBlaze previously reported that in the last days of former President Barack Obama’s administration, the Department of Health and Human Services issued a regulation restricting the ability of states to block “specific types of providers,” such as Planned Parenthood, from receiving Title X funds “based on reasons unrelated to their ability to provide required services in an effective manner.”

At the time, HHS said the rule would increase access to family planning services. Opponents of the regulation argued that it took away a state’s ability to decide where Title X funds are best spent.

The House voted Thursday to overturn the regulation, 230-188.

Rep. Diane Black (R-Tenn.), who introduced the legislation, said in remarks on the House floor that “while I am unapologetically pro-life, you don’t have to be in order to support this resolution. You just have to believe in the Tenth Amendment.”

“Despite the histrionics you may hear on the other side of the aisle today, with this resolution we are not voting to defund Planned Parenthood, voting to cut Title X funding, or voting to restrict abortion rights. … We are simply voting today to affirm the right of states to fund the healthcare providers that best suit their needs, without fear of reprisal from their own federal government,” she said.

“That’s how the Title X grant program functioned for more than 45 years until the Obama Administration decided to leave this parting gift to the abortion industry on its way out the door,” Black added.

Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.) called the resolution “cruel” and “discriminatory” in remarks on the House floor.

“The supporters of this resolution are willing to sacrifice a woman’s access to basic health care services in order to stamp out abortion,” Maloney said.

The vote comes as Planned Parenthood defends the entirety of its federal funding — just under $500 million annually — following a series of controversies, including allegations that they trafficked aborted fetal body parts, claims it denied. Several states have moved to strip funds from the organization as well.

According to the Washington Examiner, House Republicans used congressional authority under the Congressional Review Act in order to overturn an executive branch regulation finalized in the last 60 days.

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