Frozen Planned Parenthood of Utah funding restored, but 2 clinics remain closed

A Planned Parenthood clinic in Salt Lake City is pictured on Wednesday, July 31, 2024. Photo: McKenzie Romero/Utah News Dispatch

Planned Parenthood resumes low-cost services for eligible patients as uncertainty for future grants remains

By Katie McKellar for Utah News Dispatch

Planned Parenthood of Utah has announced it’s restarting low-cost or free services for eligible patients now that previously frozen funding has been restored.

As of Monday, low-income Utahns can again qualify for no or very-low-cost care at Planned Parenthood health centers across Utah for family planning services like birth control, sexually transmitted infection testing and treatment, and cancer screenings.

The services under the Title X Family Planning Program have resumed in the state after the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Population Affairs — which administered the program — informed the Planned Parenthood Association of Utah on Dec. 19 that the grant funding would be restored.

https://utahnewsdispatch.com/2025/04/22/planned-parenthood-of-utah-shutting-down-2-clinics-amid-trump-funding-freeze/embed/#?secret=z5DhqyoZgV#?secret=14cDDDvN5I

Friday, Planned Parenthood of Utah received $2 million in Title X funding for the current grant year that had been withheld since April 2025, when President Donald Trump’s administration froze the funding, including $2.8 million in grants that Utah clinics relied on.

Due to that freeze, Planned Parenthood of Utah announced it would be shutting down two clinics in Logan and St. George and increasing fees. Those rural clinics remain closed.

Not all of the funding has been restored, though. The grant authorized last week distributed $2 million, down from $2.8 million Utah received in 2024.

Title X is the nation’s only federal program dedicated to providing affordable birth control, cancer screenings, and other sexual and reproductive health care to people with low incomes. Federal law prohibits Title X funds from being spent on abortions.

Shireen Ghorbani, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Association of Utah, issued a statement praising the restored funding but expressing frustration with the damage that has been done due to the frozen funding.

“We are thrilled that Title X funding is restored to Utah for now, allowing more Utahns to get critical family planning services, such as birth control, cancer screenings, and STI testing, that they otherwise could not afford,” she said. “But we cannot ignore the fact that too many Utahns have already felt the devastating effects of the Trump administration’s unwarranted decision to withhold this funding for the last nine months.”

Ghorbani said many of the 26,000 Utahns who rely on the program were “forced to pay more for their health care or go without care altogether.”

“And because of the Trump administration’s attack on this critical program, PPAU was forced to close two health centers, leaving the communities of St. George and Logan without access to the care we provided there for decades,” she said.

Ghorbani also warned that a cloud of uncertainty remains over future grant money.

“While this funding is restored for now, there is no guarantee that it will continue,” she said. “We do not know if we will receive the grant this year or ever again – or what other attacks on sexual and reproductive health this administration may impose.”

Still Ghorbani said Planned Parenthood Association of Utah will continue to work to provide affordable health care to Utahns in need.

“At Planned Parenthood Association of Utah, we believe that everyone deserves affordable, accessible health care,” she said. “While the Trump administration is willing to play politics with your health, we remain firm in our commitment to deliver high-quality, affordable reproductive care for the people in our communities — no matter what. Our doors are open — still — and we look forward to continuing to serve patients in Utah.”