U.S. Court of Appeals rejects Ind. abortion law

Indiana cannot refuse funding to Planned Parenthood because abortions are among the organization’s services, the United States Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals ruled
Tuesday.

The issue began in 2011, when Gov. Mitch Daniels passed a law prohibiting state agencies from entering contracts with entities performing abortions or maintaining and operating facilities where abortions are performed. The law also prohibited these facilities from receiving state grants.

Planned Parenthood of Indiana, along with some of its patients, sued the Indiana State Department of Health, claiming the law violated the Medicaid Act and was
unconstitutional.

In Planned Parenthood of Indiana, Inc. v. Commissioner of the Indiana State Department of Health, the appeals court in Chicago reached a decision, upholding part of Planned Parenthood’s claim and reversing another part. They affirmed that the state of Indiana does not have the right to exclude providers from its Medicaid program for any reason.

However, the court reversed the lower court’s ruling from last year, giving Indiana the authority to cease the funding for Planned Parenthood’s federal grants from the Disease Intervention Services program.

The statements may sound contradictory, but they merely address different aspects of the issue. Though Indiana does not have the authority to refuse funding for Planned Parenthood and its affiliates completely, it is not unconstitutional for the government to refuse to subsidize abortion, as long as it does not directly affect the woman’s abortion right.

“Although the injunction concerning Medicaid funding was not lifted, we note that the 7th Circuit found the State has the legal authority to decide how federal block-grant dollars — which are tax dollars — will be distributed,” Indiana Attorney General Greg Zoeller said in a press release. “We will review this opinion more thoroughly with our clients before deciding how best to continue to defend the Indiana law.”

The full documentation of the case is available on the U.S. Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals website at ca7.uscourts.gov/.