New York Attorney General Sues to Block Federal Effort to Defund Planned Parenthood

New York Attorney General Letitia James has joined a coalition of 21 other attorneys general and the state of Pennsylvania in suing to block a provision in the "One Big Beautiful Bill Act" (OBBA) that targets and defunds Planned Parenthood, the nation's largest provider of reproductive health care. The provision, signed into law on July 4, prohibits Medicaid funding from going to non-profit health care clinics that receive a certain amount of Medicaid funding and provide abortions, criteria that almost exclusively applies to Planned Parenthood clinics. The lawsuit argues that the government's intent is clear: to defund Planned Parenthood and silence its advocacy, leaving millions of low-income people without access to essential care.

Key Takeaways:

• The "One Big Beautiful Bill Act" (OBBA) prohibits Medicaid funding from going to non-profit health care clinics that receive a certain amount of Medicaid funding and provide abortions.
• The provision targets Planned Parenthood, the nation's largest provider of reproductive health care, and would defund its clinics nationwide.
• Planned Parenthood provided essential care to 89,000 New Yorkers enrolled in Medicaid in 2023 alone, including tens of thousands of STI tests, cancer screenings, and contraceptive services.
• Cutting off funding to Planned Parenthood would devastate access to health care, especially for low-income New Yorkers, young people, and people of color.
• The lawsuit argues that the provision is unconstitutional, retaliatory, and deeply harmful to public health.
• Attorney General James and the coalition are seeking a court order declaring the defunding provision unconstitutional and halting its implementation.
• The lawsuit also argues that the provision violates several constitutional provisions, including the First Amendment, the Spending Clause, and the Constitution's ban on bills of attainder.

Statistics:

• 89,000 New Yorkers enrolled in Medicaid received care at Planned Parenthood clinics in 2023. (Source: AGNY Press Release)
• 21 attorneys general from California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, and Wisconsin joined the lawsuit. (Source: AGNY Press Release)
• 1 million low-income people rely on Planned Parenthood clinics for essential health care. (Source: Planned Parenthood)

Sources:

• AGNY Press Release

+ https://ag.ny.gov/press-release/2025/attorney-general-james-sues-stop-federal-government-defunding-planned-parenthood