Planned Parenthood facilities in Texas will no longer receive taxpayer funds through the Medicaid program beginning February 3.
The state denied the abortion provider’s request to continue to receive Medicaid reimbursement funding for its clinics, as Catholic News Agency observed.
Jennifer Allmon, executive director of the Texas Catholic Conference of Bishops, praised the persistence of the Texas legislature, and said while the abortion industry has spread the narrative that low-income women need Planned Parenthood for health services, many other options actually exist.
“There are hundreds of providers throughout the state of Texas willing to serve poor women with authentic healthcare services that are not also peddling abortion,” Allmon said. “The Texas Pregnancy Care Network has a list of such providers throughout the state and if these providers do not accept Medicaid, they can make referrals to life-affirming Medicaid providers who can offer genuine healthcare to women in need.”
In November, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit overruled a lower district court’s decision, ending a five-year battle waged by Planned Parenthood affiliates in Texas to block the state from eliminating their Medicaid taxpayer funding.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton cited undercover video showing Planned Parenthood’s fetal tissue activities in his statement about the ruling, asserting the abortion vendor is not “qualified” to receive taxpayer funds: