The Supreme Court in the case of Medina v. Planned Parenthood South Atlantic heard oral arguments on April 2, 2025.
The case centers on whether the Medicaid Act’s “any-qualified-provider” provision grants beneficiaries an enforceable right under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 to sue in federal court, following South Carolina’s 2018 defunding of Planned Parenthood as a Medicaid provider.
South Carolina and the United States argued the provision lacks rights-creating language, typical of Spending Clause statutes, while Planned Parenthood contended it could bring this type of lawsuit in federal court to prevent the state from decertifying it as a Medicaid provider.
Justices debated the provision’s language, its alignment with the Gonzaga test, the validity of prior cases like Wilder, and alternative remedies, with the decision—expected by early summer 2025—poised to impact abortion funding, federalism, and states’ ability to prioritize women’s healthcare over abortion.
Medina-Oral-Argument-Debrief
