A federal appeals court has ruled in favor of the Trump administration, allowing the government to halt Medicaid funding to Planned Parenthood while legal challenges to the provision continue.
The dispute centers on Section 71113 of the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” signed into law by President Trump on July 4. This provision prohibits federal Medicaid payments to “Prohibited Entities,” specifically targeting organizations that meet four criteria: they must be 501(c)(3) nonprofits, serve as essential community providers primarily engaged in family planning services, provide abortions outside narrow exceptions, and have received more than $800,000 in Medicaid funding in fiscal year 2023.
Planned Parenthood Federation of America, along with its Massachusetts and Utah affiliates, filed suit on July 7, 2025, against Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Administrator Mehmet Oz. The organization argued the law violated constitutional protections, including freedom of association, due process rights, and constituted a bill of attainder.
Federal District Judge Indira Talwani in Massachusetts initially sided with Planned Parenthood, issuing preliminary injunctions on July 21 and July 28, that blocked enforcement of Section 71113. The judge found the law likely violated constitutional protections and would cause immediate harm to Medicaid patients who rely on Planned Parenthood services.
Judge Talwani’s rulings emphasized that the provision would “adversely affect numerous patients who depend on its clinics for essential services such as family planning and sexually transmitted infection testing”. The July 28 injunction was expanded to protect “all other members” of Planned Parenthood Federation of America.
However, the First Circuit Court of Appeals, composed of Judges Gustavo A. Gelpí, Lara E. Montecalvo, and Seth R. Aframe, all appointed by President Biden, unanimously granted the government’s motion to stay the preliminary injunctions. The ruling provided no detailed justification for the decision.
The Justice Department had argued that “the elected Branches determined that taxpayer funds should not be used to subsidize certain entities that practice abortion – conduct that many Americans find morally abhorrent.” They contended that the district court’s injunctions improperly intruded on Congressional spending authority and executive enforcement power.
The ruling has immediate consequences for healthcare access. Planned Parenthood reports that more than 1.1 million patients can no longer use their Medicaid insurance at its health centers nationwide. The organization warns that as many as 200 health centers across 24 states are now at risk of closure.
The funding restriction affects not only abortion services but also contraception, pregnancy tests, STD testing and treatment, cancer screenings, and other reproductive health services. Nearly half of Planned Parenthood’s patients rely on Medicaid for coverage.
The First Circuit is expected to hear full arguments on the case’s merits in the coming months, with the potential for eventual Supreme Court review. Meanwhile, the funding restriction remains in effect.
