Defunding of Planned Parenthood Unconstitutional in Ohio

From a 30 page decision, a three-judge panel wrote a unanimous argument countering the Ohio Department of Health’s law which was intended to strip $1.5 million from the health organization Planned Parenthood. The 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is the second court to strike down the state’s 2016 law. The panel included two judges appointed by Republican presidents and a Democratic appointee.

A few months after Gov. John Kasich enacted the law with his signature, a court case was brought by Planned Parenthood of Greater Ohio and of the Southwest Region. According to the decision, Planned Parenthood and its affiliates “are among the largest providers of health services in the areas their 27 clinics serve under the federal programs at issue and provide many of those services free of charge to low-income and underserved communities. If (they) are excluded from the federal programs, they will no longer be able to provide the services for free.”

Mike Gonidakis, president of the anti-abortion group Ohio Right to Life, said in a statement that the 6th Circuit “made the wrong decision” and that the Constitution does not give private companies the right to taxpayer money.