Twenty-two states filed a lawsuit on July 29 challenging a provision in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act that would strip Medicaid funding from Planned Parenthood, the nation’s largest abortion provider.
The lawsuit, filed by attorneys general from Democratic-led states and the governor of Pennsylvania, seeks to block a provision in the legislation that bars organizations providing abortion care and that received more than $800,000 in Medicaid funding in fiscal year 2023 from receiving Medicaid reimbursements. This includes Planned Parenthood health centers.
The states alleged that the provision targeted Planned Parenthood for its abortion advocacy, arguing that it violates the spending clause and First Amendment protections by retaliating against the organization.
The provision would deny low-income individuals access to cancer screenings, testing, and treatment for sexually transmitted infections, and family planning services, according to the lawsuit.
The lawsuit also argues that the provision would cripple the states’ medical healthcare ecosystem and force them to use state funds to keep affected health care centers operational.
“The federal government is once again playing politics with our health care system, with devastating consequences,” New York Attorney General Letitia James, one of the plaintiffs in the complaint, said in a statement.
“This administration’s shameful and illegal targeting of Planned Parenthood will make it harder for millions of people to get the health care they need,” James added.
The states urged the court to issue an injunction that will block the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) from enforcing the provision and to declare it unconstitutional.
Other attorneys general joining the lawsuit include those from California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and the District of Columbia. The state of Pennsylvania also joined in the lawsuit.
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro condemned the “defund provision” as unlawful, saying that it would harm those who depend on Planned Parenthood for essential health services.
“This unconstitutional decision threatens to close vital health care centers and deny Pennsylvanians essential, lifesaving care such as cancer screening and prevention, family planning services, and prenatal and postpartum care,” Shapiro wrote on X.
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