WASHINGTON — Poor people can sue in federal court to force states to provide them with Medicaid benefits promised under federal law, two federal appeals courts ruled separately this month.
Plaintiffs seeking benefits in Michigan and North Carolina had sued the two states, which, along with others strengthened by Supreme Court rulings on states' rights, had argued they are immune from such lawsuits.
But in separate rulings that amounted to a victory for patients, three-judge appeals court panels for the 4th Circuit, in Richmond, Va., and the 6th Circuit, in Cincinnati, said the immunity doctrine does not shield state officials from complaints of depriving citizens of federal rights.