Supreme Court 6-3 Ruling Allows States to Exclude Planned Parenthood From Medicaid, Blocking Patient Lawsuits in Medina Case

On June 26, 2025, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a 6-3 ruling in Medina v. Planned Parenthood South Atlantic, affirming that states have the authority to exclude Planned Parenthood from their Medicaid programs. The Court held that Medicaid patients do not have the legal right to sue states for cutting off funding to Planned Parenthood, as the relevant federal law does not explicitly grant such a right.

This decision allows states, including South Carolina, to block Medicaid funds from Planned Parenthood, which provides a range of non-abortion health services such as contraception, cancer screenings, prenatal care, and pregnancy testing. Although federal law already prohibits Medicaid funds from being used for abortion services, Planned Parenthood received nearly $800 million in taxpayer dollars through Medicaid in 2023-2024 for other health care services. The ruling has been praised by anti-abortion advocates and some lawmakers as a victory for taxpayers and states' rights, while critics warn it will reduce access to essential health care for millions of Medicaid recipients, particularly women and low-income individuals. The decision is expected to encourage more states to defund Planned Parenthood from Medicaid programs. The Court emphasized that any change to patients' rights to sue would need to come from Congress.