By Justice Neil Gorsuch Stephan Schwartz
The Supreme Court effectively ruled on Thursday morning that South Carolina can exclude Planned Parenthood from its Medicaid programs because the national health care organization also offers abortion care. The decision will deny hundreds of thousands of low-income patients their only health care option and paves a path for other states to do the same.
The 6-3 ruling, written by Justice Neil Gorsuch, reversed a 4th Circuit Court decision and remanded the case. Justices Ketanji Brown Jackson, Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor dissented.
鈥淢edicaid offers States 鈥榓 bargain.鈥 In return for federal funds, States agree 鈥榯o spend them in accordance with congressionally imposed conditions,鈥欌 Gorsuch wrote in the opinion.
鈥淪hould a State fail to comply substantially with those conditions, the Secretary of Health and Human Services can withhold some or all of its federal Medicaid funding,鈥 Gorsuch continued. 鈥淭his case poses the question whether, in addition to that [鈥