The US Supreme Court ruled Thursday that states can lawfully exclude Planned Parenthood from receiving Medicaid funds, handing a significant win to the pro-life movement and raising new questions about how the decision could affect states like Alaska. The vote was 6-3.
In Medina v. Planned Parenthood South Atlantic, the justices upheld South Carolina’s decision to disqualify Planned Parenthood from its state Medicaid program.
Writing for the majority, Justice Neil Gorsuch said Medicaid recipients do not have the federal right to challenge a state’s decision to deny funding to a particular provider. Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett joined the opinion. Justice Thomas wrote a concurring opinion.
Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson wrote the dissent for herself and Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan.
The decision may embolden conservative states seeking to block Medicaid funds from reaching providers who aid in the killing of unborn humans through abortion services. It also opens the door for new legal and political challenges at the state level.
In Alaska, the ruling is complicated by the Alaska Supreme Court’s ruling on privacy.
Alaska currently allows Planned Parenthood to receive Medicaid funding for a wide range of services. The state uses funds to pay for what are deemed “medically necessary” abortions for low-income women, as mandated by rulings from the Alaska Supreme Court.
The Hyde Amendment, a federal law passed in 1976, prohibits the use of federal Medicaid funds for abortions except in cases of rape, incest, or when the mother’s life is endangered. In Alaska, this means federal Medicaid funds cannot be used for most abortions. However, Alaska’s state constitution, as interpreted by court rulings like the 2019 Alaska Supreme Court decision, requires the state to fund “medically necessary” abortions for low-income women through Medicaid using state funds. This allows Planned Parenthood in Alaska to receive state Medicaid funding for abortions beyond the Hyde Amendment’s limited exceptions, covering a broader range of procedures deemed necessary under state law.
In 2022, Alaska Medicaid funded roughly 43% of the approximately 1,200 abortions performed in the state. Planned Parenthood is the largest abortionist using state-provided Medicaid in Alaska.
With the Supreme Court now backing the rights of states like South Carolina to cut off Medicaid funds to abortion-related providers, it’s unclear whether Alaska’s legal framework, as interpreted by the liberal Alaska Supreme Court, could be challenged, reinterpreted, or targeted in future litigation by carefully crafted legislation.
Although Thursday’s ruling does not directly override Alaska’s state court decisions, it may add pressure to revisit those precedents in light of evolving federal standards.