Yesterday, the First Circuit Court of Appeals ruled 3-0 that the federal government can enforce the portion of the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” that cuts Medicaid funding to abortion providers like Planned Parenthood while the legal case continues. The decision allows the government to bar tax-exempt organizations that perform abortions and had received more than $800,000 in reimbursements in 2023 from receiving further Medicaid funds. The ruling removes a lower court’s preliminary injunction from July 2025 that had blocked the provision and was keeping the funding stream in place.
Liberty Counsel in a press release yesterday notes that the three-judge panel issued a brief two-page decision siding with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) stating the government had “met” its burden to remove the injunction while proceedings continue toward a permanent decision.
The case arose from a Planned Parenthood lawsuit alleging that the defunding provision targeted the abortion giant and its members. However, the HHS argued in its defense that the provision restriction is “generally applicable,” does not target specific entities, and “bears no resemblance” to targeted “punishment.”
The ruling aligns with the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision in Medina v. Planned Parenthood South Atlantic, which permitted South Carolina to defund Planned Parenthood from Medicaid. The 6-3 ruling, authored by Justice Neil Gorsuch, stated that the federal Medicaid Act does not confer a right to choose any qualified medical provider, and that South Carolina has the authority to strip Planned Parenthood’s status as a qualified provider effectively closing it off from Medicaid funds.
In May, Planned Parenthood had announced that 200 out of its 600 facilities nationwide could close due to the Medicaid defunding provisions in the bill. While dozens of its facilities have already closed, the appeals court ruling could force Planned Parenthood to close even more abortion centers nationwide.
Liberty Counsel Founder and Chairman Mat Staver said, “The courts continue to rule that funding abortion is not a legal requirement. It makes no sense to require the federal government and the states to fund abortion organizations that kill children. Congress did not create a right for individuals to have taxpayers pay for their abortions. Taxpayer dollars should never be used to fund abortion or subsidize practices that kill children and harm women.”
Founded in 1989, Liberty Counsel is a 501(c)(3) non-profit litigation, education, and policy organization that advances religious freedom, the sanctity of human life, and the family.