Planned Parenthood affiliates are turning to Botox injections, intravenous (IV) hydration drips, and other cosmetic services to offset steep financial losses after their federal Medicaid reimbursements were cut last year, The Wall Street Journal reported March 1.
To help offset what leaders estimate is a $100 million revenue gap — more than half its annual budget – Planned Parenthood Mar Monte, the organization’s largest affiliate, is rolling out a slate of new services, including Botox injections, dermal fillers, IV hydration drips, laser hair removal, and other aesthetic procedures paid for in cash.
Select clinics are also adding nitrous oxide, commonly known as laughing gas, for intrauterine device (IUD) insertions and removals, certain gynecological exams, and abortions. In addition, the affiliate has launched a telehealth program called “Poppy,” which offers $250 virtual appointments for perimenopausal care, such as hormone replacement therapy and prescriptions for some weight-loss medications. Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists, which are a class of medications used to treat diabetes and obesity, are among the qualifying drugs.
Leaders told the Journal that the new offerings are intended to generate revenue and attract new patients as the affiliate works to offset a nine-figure budget shortfall.
The shortfall follows provisions in President Donald Trump’s sweeping federal spending and tax package known as the “big, beautiful bill.” In 2025, Mar Monte closed five facilities, cut programs, and laid off nearly 15% of its staff as a result, according to the Journal.
Nationwide, more than 50 Planned Parenthood clinics closed since the bill’s passage because affiliates struggled to adjust to the funding changes. While some locations have consolidated operations or added procedures such as vasectomies, the Journal reported that Mar Monte’s expansion into cosmetic treatments and concierge-style telehealth represents one of the most visible departures yet from the organization’s traditional model.
“We know we have to face reality to keep our doors open,” Stacy Cross, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Mar Monte, told the Journal. “That’s where these new services come in.”
“We’ll never fill this $100 million gap. It’s impossible,” Cross also told the newspaper. “But we have to do everything we can.”
Unlike Medicaid-funded services, the new aesthetic treatments are paid for in cash, with posted prices and clear margins. The Journal reported that Botox at the Sacramento clinic is offered at $9 per unit — at least 25% less than prices advertised at nearby medical spas — while IV hydration drips range from $100 to $150. Leaders told the newspaper that facilities already possess much of the necessary medical equipment, limiting startup costs and allowing the affiliate to pivot quickly.
“On Saturdays, a Sacramento clinic repurposes the reclining chairs reserved for patients recovering from abortion procedures for the people coming in for the IVs,” the report said. “To lean in to the spa vibe, workers tuck away the medical supplies typically in the room.”
The Journal also reported that more than 30 employees at Mar Monte have signed up for accredited training sessions to administer the new treatments.
“We’re not stagnant,” Dalton told the Journal. “We want to be relevant and want to learn new things.”
“Everyone’s first reaction when I tell them that this is what we’re doing now is, ‘What?’” Samantha Pohlman, the affiliate’s aesthetics program director, told the Journal. “For me and for us, I think it makes perfect sense.”
Whether the strategy can stabilize the affiliate long term remains uncertain, the Journal reported, but as the largest Planned Parenthood affiliate in the country, Mar Monte’s experiment is being closely watched as a potential model for others navigating similar fiscal strain.