Planned Parenthood Wins Lawsuit Against Mississippi

Planned Parenthood won a lawsuit against the state of Mississippi, which passed a law that banned the state’s Medicaid program from using health care providers that perform abortions.

U.S. District Judge Daniel P. Jordan III made the ruling and pointed to a similar case in the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which struck down a similar law in Louisiana, reported CBS News. Jordan said Mississippi’s law interfered with people’s right to choose their own health care provider.

“Yet another court has said it is unacceptable for politicians to dictate where women can go for their health care,” said Planned Parenthood president Cecile Richards, according to UPI. “This case is about the people who rely on us for basic care every day. We will not stand for these attacks on our patient’s’ right to health care, and Planned Parenthood will fight for our patients at every turn.”

Republican Gov. Phil Bryant of Mississippi, a staunch opponent of abortion who has said he wants to end the medical procedure in his state, said he still believes he was right to sign the law, even after a federal judge blocked it.

“I will continue to stand with the Legislature and the people of Mississippi who do not want their hard-earned money going to the largest abortion provider in the nation,” Bryant said in a statement.

In April, Bryant signed into law a bill that banned abortions in the second trimester.

“We’re making Mississippi the safest place in America for an unborn child,” Bryant wrote on Twitter.

Even without the Medicare ban, abortions are difficult to obtain in Mississippi. There is only one clinic in the entire state and it has fought hard to stay open, winning a U.S. Supreme Court case against the state in June, reported The Wall Street Journal.

Sources: CBS News, The Wall Street Journal, UPI, Phil Bryant/Twitter / Photo credit: The All-Night Images/Flickr