# Planned Parenthood of Michigan Asks Whitmer for $5 Million to Prevent Clinic Closures, Marquette Among Cities Affected
Paula Thornton Greear, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood of Michigan, is pushing the governor to provide $5 million in emergency funding to prevent the closure of health centers across the state. The funding request comes amid attacks and funding cuts from the Trump administration that have left the organization struggling to maintain access to reproductive health care services.
The open letter sent to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer notes that the federally-funded Title X program, which covered around a quarter of Planned Parenthood of Michigan's funding, has already been used up for the fiscal year that does not end until October. Patients have largely been unable to use Medicaid at Planned Parenthood or have otherwise lost access to insurance coverage.
"We've been doing everything possible to weather their cruel attacks against our patients, our services, and our funding, while continuing to provide care to everyone who is relying on us," the letter states. "But we are now facing a critical funding gap that we can not bridge alone."
The Marquette area was directly affected by this funding crisis. A Planned Parenthood clinic in Marquette closed in April 2025 due to funding cuts. This closure followed a period of operation that ended in December 2021 before the clinic closed entirely in April 2025.
Greear criticized Whitmer on a call with reporters following the open letter. She stated that Michigan patients are not a football to be tossed around from branch to branch of the government. These are real people who need care, she added. Governor Whitmer needs to take responsibility and drive a solution forward.
"We've been doing everything possible to weather their cruel attacks against our patients, our services, and our funding, while continuing to provide care to everyone who is relying on us," Greear told reporters. "But we are now facing a critical funding gap that we can not bridge alone."
The governor's office says it is limited in its ability to distribute funding unilaterally. Stacey LaRouche, a spokesperson for the governor's office, wrote to Michigan Advance that Governor Whitmer is one of the country's greatest champions for reproductive freedom. Under the Michigan Constitution, the legislature has the responsibility to allocate state funds. The organization would be encouraged to work with the legislature on their budget asks.
The letter noted that governors in Maine and Illinois have used executive powers to send money to their respective states' Planned Parenthood organizations to fill similar funding gaps. When asked what specific funding mechanism the organization is asking Whitmer to use, Greear said they want the governor to use whatever lawful administrative, budgetary and executive pathways are available to stabilize reproductive health care access. The specific mechanism matters less than the outcome at this point.
It is unlikely that the Republican-controlled Michigan House would be amenable to this kind of funding infusion into Planned Parenthood. The letter writes that the state House is loyal to the president and his politics, which forecloses any possibility of a legislative appropriation to preserve the care they provide.
Greear was clear that the financial ask is a one-time request as the organization deals with the immediate effects of the changes on the federal level. They are planning for a future in which federal funding for Planned Parenthood may never be reliable again.
"We're not asking Michigan to carry us indefinitely," Greear told reporters. "What it is going to do is buy us time to prevent irreversible closures while restructuring and going down the philanthropic path and county partnerships and other funding strategies and developing those and watching them mature."
Greear added that the timeline to make decisions about individual health centers and clinics and the window to avoid their closures is closing quickly. Once those types of decisions on infrastructure, staffing and programs are made, they are difficult to reverse.
The urgency behind the call drove the decision to send the open letter and bring the discussion into the public eye. "Put simply, there is no one else who can act to save our health centers. It is down to you," the letter asks of Whitmer.
Paula Thornton Greear, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Michigan & Planned Parenthood Advocates of Michigan, talks about voting intersectionally during an LGBTQ+ rights roundtable at the Grand Rapids Pride Center on June 21, 2024.
The Marquette clinic that closed in April 2025 represents one of the many health centers that could face closure if the funding gap is not addressed. The organization hopes the $5 million request will preserve access to reproductive health care in communities across Michigan, including Marquette and other areas that rely on these health centers for essential services.
"Governor Whitmer needs to take responsibility and to drive a solution forward," Greear continued.
These are real people who rely on these services, Greear emphasized. The organization is asking the governor to take immediate action to keep their doors open because the window to preserve access to reproductive health care in Michigan, including abortion, is rapidly closing.
The letter sent on behalf of the Boards of Directors of Planned Parenthood of Michigan and Planned Parenthood Advocates of Michigan makes the case that the governor must act now. Without intervention, more clinics like the one in Marquette could close permanently.
"We want the governor to use whatever lawful administrative, budgetary and executive pathways are available to stabilize reproductive health care access," Greear said. "The specific mechanism matters less than the outcome at this point."
Michigan Advance reports this story to keep Michigan readers informed about developments that affect their communities. Independent journalism for all, from Detroit to Marquette.