Black Community News News and Commentary for Christians
The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that South Carolina can block state Medicaid funds to Planned Parenthood.
Governor Henry McMaster signed an executive order in 2018 blocking state Medicaid funds to the abortion mill. A Medicaid recipient named Julie Edwards and Planned Parenthood of South Atlantic sued the state over blocked funds.
The issue before the high court was whether the Medicaid Act’s any-qualified-provider provision gives beneficiaries a private right to choose their provider. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit ruled that the free-choice-provider provision does bestow a private right to choose the abortion mill as a provider.
The state appealed to the high court, which ruled 6-3 in the state’s favor. Here’s what the court said (PDF) about the any-qualified-provider provision (emphasis added):
The provision does not define “qualified,” leaving that to States’ traditional authority over health and safety matters. The question is whether individual Medicaid beneficiaries may sue state officials under 42 U. S. C. §1983 for failing to comply with the any-qualified-provider provision.
Liberty Counsel filed an amicus brief in the case.
“The U.S. Supreme Court has rightfully ruled that states can defund abortion,” said Mat Staver, founder and chairman of Liberty Counsel. “It makes no sense to require states to fund an organization that kills children. Congress did not create a right for individuals to have states pay for their abortions. Taxpayer dollars should never be used to fund abortion or subsidize practices that kill children and harm women.”
The South Carolina Supreme Court upheld the state’s six-week abortion ban last month.
Photo credit: By Fibonacci Blue – Flickr: Planned Parenthood in St. Paul, CC BY 2.0, Link
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