A study done by teachers with the help of Planned Parenthood workers says that patients in Texas were hurt by the fact that the abortion giant couldn’t get Medicaid money.
The study in Contraception and the writers did not mention this conflict of interest.
The results of the study were also questioned by a social scientist and a professor of business research methods.
“Access to Care Following Planned Parenthood’s Termination from Texas’ Medicaid Network: A Qualitative Study” looked at the experiences of women in Texas who were looking for other health facilities after the state cut it off from its Medicaid system.
Researchers from the University of Texas at Austin and people who work at Planned Parenthood were among the authors. One of the contributors, Dr. Anitra Beasley, is both a professor and dean at Baylor College of Medicine and the associate medical director for Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast.
The College Fix asked Contraception twice in the last week why it didn’t have a “conflict of interest” statement for the writers who worked at Planned Parenthood, but did not hear back.
“The Planned Parenthood authors gave feedback on draughts and findings, but they did not help collect data, analyse it, or write up findings,” the authors wrote.
The small study was based on 24 completed interviews (there were originally 30 participants). It found that “participants had trouble getting care, such as same-day appointments and medications on-site,” and that they “delayed or didn’t get reproductive health care, such as contraception, and felt upset.”
A pro-life scholar who studies the effects of abortion policies questioned these findings in comments to The Fix.
Michael New, an associate professor of practise at the Catholic University of America, said that the study “has a number of methodological weaknesses,” most notably a small number of people who took part in the study. He also is affiliated with the pro-life Charlotte Lozier think tank.
“It’s surprising that so few people took part, since the authors tried to find volunteers for 9 months and paid those who were willing to fill out surveys,” said New.
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“Considering that thousands of Texans obtained various health services from Planned Parenthood[,] a survey of 30 people provides very little information about the experiences of women who obtained either health care or contraception from Planned Parenthood,” New told The Fix.
“People who volunteer to fill out surveys are disproportionately likely to have strong opinions about controversial issues,” New said.
“Those who agreed to participate were probably angry about the fact that Texas excluded Planned Parenthood from the state Medicaid program,” the professor said. “This likely skews the results.”
The Fix asked Anna Chatillon and Kari White of UT Austin for a copy of the interview guide used in the study and a response to New’s comments. White did not respond to two inquiries sent in the past week, while Chatillon deferred to a UT Austin spokesperson.
“The goal of qualitative research, such as this, is not to generalize to a larger population but to capture a range of detailed experiences,” Laura Dixon of the university’s Texas Policy Evaluation Project said via email. The scholars are affiliated with that initiative.
“As we note in the limitations section of our manuscript, the sample size limits the study’s generalizability. In this same section, we also state that patients who had more adverse experiences with the termination may have been more motivated to participate than those who did not participate,” Dixon said. “However, our results [are] largely consistent with other peer-reviewed published articles on the impacts of similar exclusions on patients’ access to care.”
The study argues that “before Texas terminated Planned Parenthood from Medicaid, clients found quality care at health centers that was evidence based, compassionate, and accessible.”
Defunding the provider “compromises access to sexual and reproductive health care for the most vulnerable Texans in a state with high maternal mortality rates and severely restricted access to legal abortion care, both of which disproportionately affect people living on low incomes and people of color,” the authors wrote.
The paper calls for “returning to compliance with federal policy” to preserve “reproductive autonomy” for Texans.
But this does not paint the full picture, according to Professor New.
He said Texas Medicaid recipients have had “plenty of other options” aside from Planned Parenthood, noting that there were 68 Federally Qualified Health Centers in the state and just 39 Planned Parenthood centers in 2015. FQHCs are taxpayer-funded health care clinics that provide free or low-cost primary care but don’t commit abortions.
