Overview

• The Supreme Court’s 6-3 ruling in Medina v. Planned Parenthood South Atlantic reversed the Fourth Circuit and blocked patient lawsuits to enforce provider choice in Medicaid programs.
• The majority opinion, authored by Justice Neil Gorsuch, found that Section 1983 does not clearly confer an individual right to sue states over provider participation under federal Medicaid law.
• Conservative justices argued that policy decisions about Medicaid funding and which providers qualify should be made by elected lawmakers, not by courts.
• In dissent, Justices Ketanji Brown Jackson, Sonia Sotomayor, and Elena Kagan warned that the decision will reduce access to contraception, cancer screenings, and other health services for low-income and rural Medicaid beneficiaries.
• South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster praised the ruling as a win for state sovereignty and pro-life policy, and advocates warn other states may follow suit to limit essential care at Planned Parenthood.