Oklahoma is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to stop the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) from stripping the state of federal family planning subsidies because officials refuse to refer pregnant women to abortion counseling services.
The state on Wednesday asked the Supreme Court to intervene after the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled 2-1 in July that HHS was allowed to withhold funding because the state did not meet conditions for participation in the program. of subsidies.
Title X grant funds previously held by the state health department were transferred to community organizations and the state lost about $4.5 million.
Most Title X clients are young and have low incomes; Through the program, they receive low-cost or free family planning and reproductive health services.
Title abortions.
But the Biden administration in 2021 required state-funded providers who want to receive money from the Title service could be offered. obtained if requested.
Oklahoma banned almost all abortions after the Dobbs decision that overturned Roe v. Wade. Last year, the state refused to give Title X patients the phone number of a national hotline because it said the hotline was a reference to abortion.
The appeals court ruled that the national hotline did not encourage abortion by merely presenting it as an option.
Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond (R) said HHS’s actions violated the Weldon Amendment because it punished the state for refusing to provide abortions, even though that was not a condition of funding.
The request was forwarded to Judge Neil Gorsuch, who by default handles emergency appeals arising from the 10th Circuit. He could simply grant the request or forward it to the court’s plenary for a vote.
This story originally appeared on thehill.com read the full story
