Abortion, the American Nightmare. The Supreme Court Blocks Public Funding

Abortion, the American nightmare. With a decision taken by a conservative majority (6-3), the Supreme Court of the United States has legitimized the possibility of cutting funding from the national health program Medicaid to Planned Parenthood, the largest association for reproductive rights in the United States. A right already undermined at its constitutional basis with the revocation of Roe v. Wade three years ago , limited, transformed into a crime, cancelled in most states, a practice punished, averted, persecuted, today suffers a new very hard blow. A direct attack on the already bent front of pro-choice resistance.

The case originates in South Carolina , where in 2018 Republican Governor Henry McMaster signed an executive order excluding Planned Parenthood from Medicaid reimbursements, accusing the organization of using public funds – albeit indirectly – to finance abortion. This, despite the fact that federal law has prohibited the use of health program funds for voluntary terminations of pregnancy since 1976, except in cases of rape, incest or danger to the life of the woman.

In South Carolina, where the practice is banned after the first six weeks of pregnancy, the order’s effect has also ended up affecting the organization’s contraceptive, cancer screening and pregnancy testing services . The lawsuit was filed by Planned Parenthood South Atlantic and a patient, Julie Edwards , who invoked a federal provision that guarantees Medicaid patients the right to access care from any medical provider “qualified and willing to treat them.”

The Supreme Court's decision

Anti-abortion protests outside the Supreme Court

Lower courts had ruled in their favor, but the Supreme Court overturned the verdict. Progressive Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson dissented, calling the ruling “a civil rights issue” and criticizing South Carolina for “violating the right of Medicaid recipients to choose their own doctors.” She also said the decision “will deprive millions of citizens of a tangible means to enforce rights expressly guaranteed by Congress.”

What Planned Parenthood Does

Planned Parenthood says about half of its patients nationwide receive Medicaid care. In South Carolina, where it operates two clinics, the organization has been providing care to thousands of low-income residents for years, often without options amid a shortage of primary care physicians. Planned Parenthood South Atlantic President Paige Johnson denounced the ruling as “a grave injustice” that directly affects disadvantaged communities: “It is clear that Governor McMaster has used anti-abortion sentiment as a weapon to take away access to basic health care from poor people.” Johnson also noted that “ the Court has twice refused to hear the case , despite the clear political intent behind the governor’s action.”

Anti-abortion protests outside the Supreme Court

For Republicans and anti-abortion groups, the decision confirms the legitimacy of state policies against Planned Parenthood and could encourage other conservative states to follow suit. Experts warn that if citizens can no longer sue state governments to enforce federal provisions, the only coercive tool left to the central executive would be to revoke funding, a measure considered impractical. In this scenario, the freedom of choice guaranteed by Medicaid risks turning into a mere formal right, devoid of real effectiveness. And while Planned Parenthood promises to continue providing care, the Court's ruling marks a new turning point in the conflict between civil rights, health policy and anti-abortion ideology.