Kansas can't cut off Medicaid money to Planned Parenthood, appeals court rules

Kansas acted improperly when it tried to cut off Medicaid dollars to Planned Parenthood under former Gov. Sam Brownback, a federal appeals court ruled Wednesday.

Brownback, who has now taken a position in President Donald Trump’s administration, sought to block Planned Parenthood from receiving Medicaid funding for breast exams, birth control and other services in 2016.

Brownback’s objection to sending Medicaid dollars to Planned Parenthood stemmed from the fact that the organization also provides abortion services, but those procedures are not paid for with Medicaid dollars. A federal district judge blocked Kansas from cutting off payments to the women’s health care provider in 2016.

Two years later and less than a month after Brownback left office, the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed that the state lacks the authority to prevent Medicaid recipients from obtaining services from Planned Parenthood.

Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/news/politics-government/article201386559.html