Alliance Defending Freedom Leads Supreme Court Challenge Over States’ Medicaid Authority

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case that could determine states’ authority to exclude abortion providers from receiving Medicaid funds, with Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) at the forefront of the legal battle.
The case, Medina v. Planned Parenthood South Atlantic, stems from South Carolina’s 2018 executive order declaring abortion facilities unqualified to provide family-planning services through Medicaid. Alliance Defending Freedom, representing the director of South Carolina’s Department of Health and Human Services, argues that states should have the authority to determine which providers qualify for Medicaid funding.
What is Alliance Defending Freedom?
Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) is an alliance-building, non-profit legal organization committed to protecting religious freedom, free speech, parental rights, marriage and family, and the sanctity of life.
Alliance Defending Freedom Church & Ministry Alliance provides specialized legal representation for faith-based organizations. The division works to safeguard religious institutions’ constitutional freedoms and their ability to operate in alignment with their religious convictions.
In 1967, Congress made a change to Medicaid, allowing patients to choose any “qualified” medical provider. However, Congress didn’t specify what makes a provider “qualified” and let states make that decision. Alliance Defending Freedom contends that Congress never created an explicit right for Medicaid recipients to challenge state decisions about provider qualifications in federal court.
In 2018, South Carolina’s governor ordered that abortion facilities could not receive Medicaid funding in the state. Planned Parenthood sued in response. The case has moved back and forth through the courts since then. A federal court initially ruled in Planned Parenthood’s favor and blocked South Carolina’s order. South Carolina appealed but lost again in the 4th Circuit Court.
After the Supreme Court’s decision in Health and Hospital Corporation of Marion County v. Talevski, the case was remanded back to the 4th Circuit.
Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Counsel and Vice President of Appellate Advocacy John Bursch says taxpayer dollars should never be used to fund facilities that make a profit off abortion.
“Pro-life states like South Carolina should be free to determine that Planned Parenthood and other entities that peddle abortion are not qualified to receive taxpayer funding through Medicaid. Congress did not unambiguously create a right for Medicaid recipients to drag states into federal court to challenge those decisions, so no such right exists. Applying the Supreme Court’s recent decision in the Talevski case, we expect the court to hold that Congress did not intend to allow federal courts to second guess states’ decisions about which providers are qualified to receive Medicaid funding,” Bursch said.
A ruling in Alliance Defending Freedom’s favor would give states the authority to choose where their Medicaid funding goes.
The Supreme Court’s review of this case represents a critical moment in the national debate over states’ rights in healthcare funding.