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Colorado advocates cheer, decry Supreme Court ruling on Planned Parenthood

By June 26, 2025 | updated 5 months ago

Advocates on opposing sides of the abortion debate lauded and cheered, depending on their ideological moorings, the Supreme Court’s ruling that states can exclude Planned Parenthood from their Medicaid programs.

The justices found that while Medicaid law allows people choose their own provider, that does not make it a right enforceable in court. The justices split, 6-3, along ideological lines.

The case, Medina v. Planned Parenthood, began when South Carolina’s Medicaid agency tried to remove Planned Parenthood from the state’s Medicaid program. The agency argued that, because Planned Parenthood provides abortions — which Medicaid does not fund — it should not be considered a “qualified provider” under the Medicaid Act.

Patient Julie Edwards sued the Medicaid agency, arguing that excluding Planned Parenthood violated the Medicaid Act’s “any qualified provider” provision, especially because the organization provides a range of other services besides abortions, including cancer screenings and testing for sexually transmitted infections.

While the exact number of Medicaid patients in Colorado who use Planned Parenthood services is unknown, a 2021 report by the Kaiser Family Foundation found that 12% of all Medicaid recipients who received family planning services did so at a Planned Parenthood clinic, among the highest in the nation.

Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains, which operates clinics in Colorado, New Mexico, and Wyoming, said it has no reason to believe Colorado would implement a ban like South Carolina’s.

“Today’s Supreme Court decision is a devastating blow to health care access and personal freedom,” said PPRM President and CEO Adrienne Mansanares. “The Court has opened the door for states to deny low-income patients the right to choose their own health care provider — threatening access to birth control, cancer screenings, STI testing, and preventive care for millions. This ruling has nothing to do with improving health outcomes and everything to do with political control.”

The Centennial Institute, a think tank based at Colorado Christian University, celebrated the ruling, saying South Carolina’s decision to exclude Planned Parenthood from its Medicaid program is rooted in “principled refusal to allow taxpayer dollars to indirectly subsidize abortion.”

“While Planned Parenthood claims these funds are used for non-abortion services, money is fungible, and states have a legitimate interest in ensuring their healthcare dollars do not support organizations whose core mission conflicts with the values of their citizens,” said Centennial Institute director Greg Schaller.

In November, Coloradans enshrined the right to an abortion in the state constitution. The amendment also allows for the use of public funds for abortion, repealing an amendment passed in 1984 that banned public funding of the procedure unless the mother’s life is in danger.

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