COLUMBIA, Missouri — Missouri Planned Parenthoods filed legal action Monday against a new law which removed the organizations from the federal Medicaid health insurance program.
Planned Parenthood Great Plains and Planned Parenthood Great Rivers said they have filed complaints with the state’s Administrative Hearing Commission, which serves as a court that handles disputes between the Missouri government and private organizations.
At issue is a new law that would ban Medicaid funding from going to Planned Parenthood, a measure Republicans have been trying to pass for years in a state where almost all abortions are prohibited and the procedure is not covered by Medicaid.
The law, signed by Gov. Mike Parson in May, aims to make it illegal for Missouri’s Medicaid program to reimburse Planned Parenthood for health care services to low-income patients, such as Pap smears and cancer screenings.
Abortion opponents say Planned Parenthood should not receive government funding because clinics in other states perform abortions.
According to Planned Parenthood, only Arkansas, Mississippi and Texas have succeeded in blocking Medicaid funding for the organization.
Missouri has tried for years, but has been repeatedly rejected by the courts. A state in February Supreme Court ruling concluded that Missouri lawmakers’ latest attempt to defund Planned Parenthood was unconstitutional.
The state attorney general did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment Monday.
According to Planned Parenthood, clinics in Missouri will continue to provide health care to Medicaid recipients, even though the centers are not reimbursed by the state.