A three-judge panel of the First Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Friday that Planned Parenthood is unlikely to succeed in its claims against a federal law that denies it Medicaid funding, reversing a block on the funding cuts.
The appeals panel said that a provision of President Donald Trump’s “Big, Beautiful Bill,” signed into law on July 4, did not violate the pro-abortion health care giant’s rights.
The law removes federal Medicaid funding for one year from abortion providers that received more than $800,000 in Medicaid funds in fiscal year 2023, as well as any entities affiliated with such providers.
In practice, the law “applies almost exclusively to Planned Parenthood-affiliated providers,” with only two other unrelated organizations meeting the defunding criteria. Although federal law already prohibits federal funds from being used to provide abortions, Planned Parenthood uses Medicaid funds for other services, including birth control, cancer screenings and prenatal care.
The panel, which included U.S. Circuit Judges Gustavo Gelpí, Seth Aframe, and Lara Montecalvo (all appointed by President Joe Biden), disagreed with the reasoning of U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani, who had previously issued a preliminary injunction. Talwani found that the legislation was likely an unconstitutional bill of attainder and violated the First Amendment and equal protection clause.
Writing for the panel, Judge Gelpí stated that the law doesn’t constitute a bill of attainder because it does not issue a punishment. Instead, Congress used its taxing and spending power to require recipients to face “a difficult choice: give up federal Medicaid funds and continue to provide abortion services or continue receiving such funds by abandoning the provision of abortion services.” The panel found that imposing this difficult choice does not demonstrate that Congress is punishing the recipient for past action.
The First Circuit also determined that the law is “rationally related to the federal government’s goal of reducing abortions,” rejecting Planned Parenthood’s equal protection claim that it was singled out for defunding.
Gelpí noted that Congress viewed these entities as the most significant recipients of Medicaid funds.
Planned Parenthood Federation of America’s president and CEO Alexis McGill Johnson criticized the ruling, stating that the court has “once again allowed the Trump administration to enforce Congress’s unconstitutional ‘defund’ of Planned Parenthood.” McGill Johnson added, “The intent is clear: They want to shut down Planned Parenthood health centers.”
According to a November report, 20 of Planned Parenthood’s health centers have been forced to close since the bill was passed.
A separate preliminary injunction remains in effect, blocking the federal government from defunding Planned Parenthood and other providers in 22 states and the District of Columbia, due to a challenge brought by those jurisdictions.