Paxton seeks to defund Planned Parenthood
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on Friday asked a federal appeals court for permission to immediately drop Planned Parenthood from the state’s Medicaid program.
Paxton made the request to the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals as part of ongoing efforts to remove Planned Parenthood as a Medicaid health care provider over an undercover video shot by abortion opponents in a Houston clinic in 2015.
Paxton argues that the video shows Planned Parenthood officials agreeing to illegal activity, such as changing abortion procedures to better acquire fetal tissue for researchers.
In February 2017, however, U.S. District Judge Sam Sparks sided with Planned Parenthood, ruling that the video contained no proof that illegal activity had occurred.
Last month, a threejudge panel of the 5th Circuit Court overturned Sparks’ injunction that had allowed Planned Parenthood to remain in Medicaid and returned the case to Austin for a new analysis that gives greater deference to the reasons that state officials gave for removing the organization.
Because the appeals court will not issue its mandate on that ruling until Friday, Planned Parenthood continues to provide contraceptives and other health care to low-income Texans, primarily women. The organization is weighing several options — including seeking a new injunction in Austin federal court or asking the 5th Circuit Court to reconsider the ruling — that could allow it to remain in Medicaid while the case continues.
In the meantime, Paxton has asked all 16 judges on the 5th Circuit Court to overturn a precedent-setting ruling in a separate case that allowed Planned Parenthood patients to sue Texas on behalf of the organization. While the judges weigh that request, Paxton told the court Friday, Texas should be able to drop Planned Parenthood.
“There is no justification for continuing to prevent Texas from terminating Planned Parenthood from the state’s Medicaid program when the 5th Circuit has already determined that the district court’s injunction was unlawful,” Paxton said in a written statement. “Continuing to provide taxpayer funds to Planned Parenthood is harmful to the program and violates the conscience rights of Texans.”
Planned Parenthood’s lawyers will respond to Paxton’s request soon, said Sarah Wheat, spokeswoman for Planned Parenthood of Greater Texas.
“We’ll continue to stand up for our patients’ right to choose their health care, rather than let Attorney General Paxton make those decisions for Texas women,” Wheat said. “Thousands of women enrolled in Medicaid trust Planned Parenthood health centers for their well-woman exams, birth control services, testing for sexually transmitted infections and other preventive health care each year.”
In 2016, Planned Parenthood affiliates in Texas received a combined $3.5 million in Medicaid reimbursements for providing health care, but not abortions, to about 12,500 lowincome Texans.
Ninety percent of the Medicaid money came from the federal government, with the rest provided by Texas.