Health Department seeks $100,000 grant to stock medication used in medical abortions

The Vermont Department of Health told the Appropriations Committee it is requesting a $100,000 one-time general-fund grant to Planned Parenthood Northern New England to purchase a one-year stock of mifepristone and misoprostol "to help assure uninterrupted access to care for patients," Commissioner Mark Levine said on Jan. 15.

Levine described the payment as "intended to be a one-time assistance in response to uncertainty in the regulatory environment." He said the grant would support purchase of the two medications used for medical abortions and would be limited to services provided in Vermont.

Representative Jim Harrison pressed whether the funds could be used outside Vermont. Harrison said he would not object to the organization’s mission but said, "I just don't think Vermont taxpayers should be paying for services they're providing in New Hampshire." Levine responded that, based on prior guidance two years earlier, Planned Parenthood’s inventory management meant the stock would be specifically for services provided in Vermont and "would be limited on to that." Committee members also asked whether out-of-state patients could receive services if they present at Vermont clinics; Levine said clinics would serve people who come through the door in Vermont and that the department does not expect the inventory to be differentiated by patient residency.

Levine said he could not say how many other states have taken similar actions. The department did not provide additional details on procurement or distribution logistics during the hearing. The request appeared as part of the governor’s fiscal year 2025 budget adjustment materials and requires legislative approval to change appropriations.