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| photo credit: Paul Sableman / Flickr |
Missouri passed a budget in February that does not appropriate any Medicaid reimbursement funds to abortion businesses. It directs that "no funds shall be expended to any clinic, physician's office, or any other place or facility in which abortions are performed or induced other than a hospital."
Planned Parenthood's lawsuit argues that Missouri cannot disqualify abortion businesses from the program.
“State agencies are beholden to the appropriations laws as enacted by the General Assembly,” said Kelli Jones, a spokesperson for Missouri Gov. Mike Parson. “Other state legislatures have placed similar limitations on their Medicaid programs and ultimately the courts will adjudicate cases and controversies that arise from this kind of legislation.”
