The provision of the One Big Beautiful Bill preventing Medicaid reimbursements to abortion providers was at the center of arguments on Wednesday at a federal appeals court, which has regularly had its rulings in Trump policy cases halted by the Supreme Court.
The three-judge panel on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, all of whom were appointed to the court by former President Joe Biden, heard an appeal by the Justice Department of a lower court’s order blocking the provision of the law that prevents Medicaid reimbursements for healthcare providers that receive more than $800,000 annually in funds from the program and that also provide abortion services.
The appeals court lifted the order pending appeal in September, with arguments Wednesday centering on whether the law passed by Congress contained unconstitutional targeting of abortion providers — specifically, of Planned Parenthood, which filed the lawsuit.
DOJ lawyer Eric McArthur argued to the judges that the provision of the bill passed by Congress did not unlawfully target Planned Parenthood specifically, and that the issue should not be litigated in the courtroom but rather through the legislature.
“That’s the fundamental problem with this lawsuit, is they have simply brought their claims to the wrong forum. This is only a one-year disqualification for the Medicaid program. So when this expires at the end of whatever it is, July 4 of next year, and Congress is looking at that question again, they’re free to go to Congress and try to persuade their congressman,” McArthur said.
Planned Parenthood lawyer Alan Schoenfeld argued to the court that the provision was an unlawful targeting by Congress of them with the provision.
“What you don’t hear members of Congress saying [is] ‘we’re going after abortion full stop.’ They say, ‘we’re going after Big Abortion,’ which is synonymous with Planned Parenthood, which the government doesn’t dispute, or they simply say they’re going after Planned Parenthood,” Schoenfeld told the judges.
The judges appeared skeptical of both sides’ arguments, also grappling with whether Planned Parenthood affiliates that do not perform abortions would be affected by the law. McArthur said the Department of Health and Human Services was still writing guidance on who the provision affects.
The First Circuit serves as the place for appeals from the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, among other lower courts, which has been a popular venue for opponents of President Donald Trump to file lawsuits challenging his policies and orders. The District of Massachusetts and the First Circuit both have benches composed predominantly of judges appointed by Democrats.
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The high court has granted every request by the Trump administration to halt injunctions out of the First Circuit since January.
The most recent Trump win over the First Circuit came last week when the high court lifted a block on a policy mandating that biological sex, as opposed to gender identity, be listed on a person’s U.S. passport. The First Circuit’s decision to allow a lower court’s order moving child nutrition funds to SNAP was temporarily blocked by the Supreme Court on Tuesday.
