Arizona’s Planned Parenthood affiliate and the American Civil Liberties Union sued the state of Arizona on Thursday over a just-signed law they say is a thinly veiled attempt to illegally cut off Medicaid funding from abortion providers.
The lawsuit filed in federal court in Phoenix on behalf of Planned Parenthood and doctors who provide abortions and deliver babies said the law is illegal because it will prevent women from choosing services from otherwise qualified providers just because they also provide abortion services. They said that violates the “free choice of provider” provision in federal Medicaid law and violates the Constitution’s due process and equal protection clauses.
The law signed by Republican Gov. Doug Ducey in May allows the state to cut off all funding to providers if they don’t fully segregate money they get for non-abortion services from non-government cash that pays for abortions. The law goes into effect on Aug. 6 and the lawsuit seeks an injunction permanently preventing enforcement.
Backers said they crafted the law to ensure that federal and state law barring public funding for abortions is being followed.
Ducey spokeswoman Annie Dockendorff called the law “a common-sense reform consistent with the governor’s track record of supporting legislation that protects taxpayers.