Judge blocks Trump administration's efforts to defund Planned Parenthood

A national justice connected Monday ruled Planned Parenthood clinics nationwide indispensable proceed to beryllium reimbursed for Medicaid backing arsenic the nation's largest termination supplier fights President Donald Trump's medication implicit efforts to defund the enactment successful his signature taxation legislation.

The caller bid replaces a erstwhile edict handed down by U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani successful Boston past week. Talwani initially granted a preliminary injunction specifically blocking the authorities from cutting Medicaid payments to Planned Parenthood members that didn't supply termination attraction oregon didn't conscionable a threshold of astatine slightest $800,000 successful Medicaid reimbursements successful a fixed year.

"Patients are apt to endure adverse wellness consequences wherever attraction is disrupted oregon unavailable," Talwani wrote successful her Monday order. "In particular, restricting Members' quality to supply healthcare services threatens an summation successful unintended pregnancies and attendant complications due to the fact that of reduced entree to effectual contraceptives, and an summation successful undiagnosed and untreated STIs."

A proviso successful Trump's taxation measure instructed the national authorities to extremity Medicaid payments for 1 twelvemonth to termination providers that received much than $800,000 from Medicaid successful 2023, adjacent to those similar Planned Parenthood that besides connection aesculapian services similar contraception, gestation tests and STD testing.

In its lawsuit, Planned Parenthood had argued that they would beryllium astatine hazard of closing astir 200 clinics successful 24 states if they are chopped disconnected from Medicaid funds. They estimated this would effect successful much than 1 cardinal patients losing care.

"We're suing the Trump medication implicit this targeted onslaught connected Planned Parenthood wellness centers and the patients who trust connected them for care," said Planned Parenthood's president and CEO Alexis McGill Johnson. "This lawsuit is astir making definite that patients who usage Medicaid arsenic their security to get commencement control, crab screenings, and STI investigating and attraction tin proceed to bash truthful astatine their section Planned Parenthood wellness center, and we volition marque that wide successful court."

The national section of wellness did not instantly respond to requests for comment.

Previously, the section said it powerfully disagreed with the judge's archetypal bid that allowed immoderate Planned Parenthood members to person Medicaid funding.

"States should not beryllium forced to money organizations that person chosen governmental advocacy implicit diligent care," said the department's connection director, Andrew Nixon. Doing so, helium said, "undermines authorities flexibility" and "concerns astir accountability."