Judge temporarily blocks ban of Medicaid payments to Planned Parenthood

A federal judge on Monday temporarily blocked a one-year ban of Medicaid payments to Planned Parenthood, as outlined in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act signed into law on Friday. U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani signed the temporary restraining order in response to a lawsuit filed by Planned Parenthood challenging the ban earlier in the day, according to court documents obtained by Politico.

In its lawsuit, the nation’s largest abortion business said the law is unconstitutional because it strips patients’ ability to use Medicaid as their insurance at its centers, which Planned Parenthood characterizes as health clinics. Planned Parenthood Federation of America filed the lawsuit in a federal court in Massachusetts along with the Planned Parenthood League of Massachusetts and the Planned Parenthood Association of Utah. The lawsuit accuses the Trump administration of singling out Planned Parenthood unfairly, although the bill does not reference the organization by name.

What does the bill do? While federal law already prohibits healthcare providers from using federal funds for abortions, some Medicaid money still goes to Planned Parenthood for other services such as cancer screenings and disease testing. The law, which Trump signed on Friday, cancels roughly half a billion dollars of taxpayer funding from Planned Parenthood for the next year. It rewrites the rules for which organizations are eligible for Medicaid funds. Any group that administers abortions is now disqualified. But the provision only lasts for one fiscal year, which was negotiated down from the 10-year moratorium Republican lawmakers originally wanted. According to the filing, Planned Parenthood estimates the one-year provision will lead to closing roughly 200 of its 600 centers in at least 24 states.

Dig deeper: Read Lauren Canterberry’s report in the Sift on a recent Supreme Court ruling that allows states to withhold funding from abortion centers.