A federal judge in Massachusetts allowed Planned Parenthood to continue receiving Medicaid reimbursements in an order signed on Monday, despite Congress passing a law that would end those payments.
The ruling is in response to the nonprofit’s lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services over a provision included in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act that took away Medicaid funding for one year from corporations that offer abortions and received over $800,000 in Medicaid funding in 2023.
Judge Indira Talwani in the Federal District Court in Massachusetts wrote in her order that patients were “likely to suffer adverse health consequences where care is disrupted or unavailable” if the law were to be imposed. Her ruling indefinitely blocked the federal reimbursement freeze.
“The court finds that the constitutional harm to Members and the health consequences Medicaid patients who forego or cannot obtain care may suffer without a preliminary injunction outweigh any financial harm that Defendants might incur if they are wrongly enjoined,” Talwani wrote.
The order is a continuation of her ruling last week that allowed Planned Parenthood to continue receiving Medicaid funds for procedures that aren’t abortions.
Talwani said that the removal of funding ultimately violates the nonprofit’s First Amendment rights by punishing Planned Parenthood for offering abortion services.
Planned Parenthood Federation of America, with Planned Parenthood League of Massachusetts and Planned Parenthood Association of Utah, filed the lawsuit against the Trump administration on July 7, arguing that “The Defund Provision is a naked attempt to leverage the government’s spending power to attack and penalize Planned Parenthood and impermissibly single it out for unfavorable treatment.”
“It does so not only because of Planned Parenthood Members’ long history of providing legal abortions to patients across the country, but also because of Planned Parenthood’s unique role in advocating for policies to protect and expand access to sexual and reproductive health care, including abortion,” the lawsuit said.
Shireen Ghorbani, interim president at the Planned Parenthood Association of Utah, praised the latest ruling in a press release:
“We are grateful that now all Planned Parenthood patients with Medicaid can come to their local health centers for the high-quality, essential care they need. Generations have relied on Planned Parenthood as experts in sexual and reproductive health care and as a welcoming and trusted provider in their communities. We will continue this fight in the courts to protect our patients’ freedom to get the care they need.”
Utah Sen. Mike Lee, who voted for President Donald Trump’s tax bill, criticized Talwani’s ruling. “Was Congress supposed to seek permission from this judge before passing a law halting payments to Planned Parenthood?” he posted on X. “I can’t seem to find that provision of the Constitution. Any thoughts on where one might find it?”
He also responded to the post of his colleague, Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar, a Democrat.