A US federal court on Monday blocked the Donald Trump administration from enforcing a provision in a recently enacted tax and spending bill that would strip Planned Parenthood and its affiliates of Medicaid funding, ruling the measure is likely unconstitutional.District Judge Indira Talwani in Boston issued the decision, expanding on an earlier order that had only protected certain affiliates. The new ruling ensures Medicaid payments continue for all Planned Parenthood clinics.“Patients are likely to suffer adverse health consequences where care is disrupted or unavailable,” Talwani wrote in her order, as reported by news agency AP. “In particular, restricting Members’ ability to provide healthcare services threatens an increase in unintended pregnancies and attendant complications because of reduced access to effective contraceptives, and an increase in undiagnosed and untreated STIs.”She added that the court was “not enjoining the federal government from regulating abortion and is not directing the federal government to fund elective abortions or any healthcare service not otherwise eligible for Medicaid coverage.”Planned Parenthood federation of America, along with member organisations in Massachusetts and Utah, filed the lawsuit earlier this month against health and human services secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr, warning that nearly 200 clinics in 24 states could close if Medicaid funding were withdrawn, potentially leaving over 1 million patients without care.“We’re suing the Trump administration over this targeted attack on Planned Parenthood health centers and the patients who rely on them for care,” said Planned Parenthood’s president and CEO Alexis McGill Johnson in a statement Monday. “This case is about making sure that patients who use Medicaid as their insurance to get birth control, cancer screenings, and STI testing and treatment can continue to do so at their local Planned Parenthood health center, and we will make that clear in court.”The provision in question, part of a tax bill that took effect on July 4, directed the federal government to withhold Medicaid payments for one year from abortion providers receiving more than $800,000 in Medicaid reimbursements in 2023. Though Planned Parenthood was not named directly, the organization said it was the clear target, with nearly 600 clinics in 48 states affected.Talwani emphasized that the court is not requiring the government to fund abortions or services not normally covered by Medicaid. Her ruling blocks the government from excluding organizations like Planned Parenthood that have shown a strong case in court.A spokesperson for the department of health and human services criticised the ruling, saying it “undermines state flexibility and disregards longstanding concerns about accountability.”Medicaid is a joint federal and state program that provides healthcare coverage to millions of low-income and disabled Americans. Nearly half of Planned Parenthood’s patients rely on Medicaid for their healthcare.
