Planned Parenthood of Indiana will continue to receive federal Medicaid dollars after the federal Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in the group’s favor Tuesday. Still, an Indiana pro-life group wants the fight to go on.
Planned Parenthood of Indiana brought suit against the state after the General Assembly passed legislation in 2011 halting Medicaid funding to abortion providers and Governor Mitch Daniels signed it into law.
A federal district judge last year temporarily halted the effects of the law and Tuesday the Seventh Circuit upheld that ruling.
Betty Cockrum, Planned Parenthood of Indiana president, describes her reaction to the ruling as “glee” and says it’s not abortion dollars that would be cut off.
“It’s Pap tests, it’s birth control, it’s breast exams, it’s STD testing and treatment.”
However, Sue Swayze, Indiana Right to Life legislative director, says Hoosiers can receive those services elsewhere and that the bill was designed to prevent support for the state’s abortion providers.
“We hope that we can appeal again and take it all the way up and see just how much the federal government through a program like Medicaid can have programmatic rules that tie the hands of state to do things that they find distasteful.”
In a statement, Attorney General Greg Zoeller says his office will review the decision more thoroughly before deciding on further action.
