Planned Parenthood of IN, Inc. v. Comm'r of the IN Dep't of Health, No. 11-2464 (7th Cir. 2012)
Annotate this CaseIn 2011 Indiana prohibited state agencies from providing state or federal funds to any entity that performs abortions or operates a facility where abortions are performed ( 5-22-17-5.5(b)). The Hyde Amendment already prohibits use of federal funds for most nontherapeutic abortions; Indiana has a similar ban. The new law prohibits abortion providers from receiving any state-administered funds for other services. Planned Parenthood provides medical services to low-income patients (named plaintiffs) and claimed that the law violates Medicaid’s requirement that state plans allow patients to choose their providers, 42 U.S.C. 1396a(a)(23); that it is preempted by a statute authorizing grants for programs related to sexually transmitted diseases, 42 U.S.C. 247c(c); and that it places an unconstitutional condition on receipt of funds. The district court enjoined enforcement with respect to Medicaid and 247c(c) funding. The Seventh Circuit affirmed in part. The free-choice-of-provider requirement creates a private right of action; although Indiana may exclude unqualified providers from its Medicaid program, it may not exclude a class of providers for a reason unrelated to qualifications. Other claims are not likely to succeed; the grant statute does not create actionable private rights and the law does not conflict with that statute. The government’s refusal to subsidize abortion does not impermissibly burden a woman’s right to obtain an abortion.
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