Planned Parenthood must go to trial in $1.8 billion Medicaid fraud case, judge rules
Planned Parenthood must go to trial over a $1.8 billion lawsuit by Texas accusing the corporation of defrauding the state's Medicaid health insurance program, a federal judge has determined.
U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk in Amarillo, a Trump appointee, determined last month that the case would go to trial in April. The question at the center of the case is whether Planned Parenthood committed fraud by obtaining state funding and failing to repay after the state terminated the organization from its Medicaid program.
While both Planned Parenthood and Texas had hoped for a ruling without having to go to trial, the judge did not issue a ruling in the case.
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Kacsmaryk is the same judge who, in April, suspended the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's 2000 approval of the abortion pill drug mifepristone. The U.S. Supreme Court temporarily allowed the abortion pill to remain on the market.
As Reuters reported on Oct. 23, the judge's now-sealed order found that Planned Parenthood is obligated to return some funds to Texas and Louisiana, which ended its contract with the organization. However, Louisiana is not taking part in this case, according to the outlet.
In the lawsuit, brought by an anonymous plaintiff in 2021 under the federal False Claims Act, Planned Parenthood is accused of overbilling by $17 million after Texas announced its decision to remove the organization from the Medicaid insurance program for low-income people.
Planned Parenthood President and CEO Alexis McGill Johnson referred to the case as "outrageous" in an Oct. 24 social media post, asserting that it should have been "thrown out months ago."
"Not satisfied with the overturning of Roe v. Wade, politicians are targeting ALL sexual & reproductive health care," she wrote. "Planned Parenthood will be ready at trial — Texans' access to care is on the line."
Planned Parenthood did not immediately respond to The Christian Post's request for comment.
Texas and Louisiana terminated Planned Parenthood as a provider covered through their Medicaid programs after the Center for Medical Progress, a pro-life investigative group, released a series of undercover videos in 2015.
According to Fox News Business, Texas did not finalize the termination until 2021 due to federal court orders, which were later lifted on appeal. Likewise, Louisiana ended its contract with Planned Parenthood in 2022.
The videos purported to show Planned Parenthood employees discussing the sales of aborted baby body parts for profit, which is illegal. Planned Parenthood and its supporters, however, have repeatedly claimed that the videos have been deceptively edited.
In a 2015 notice of termination letter to Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast by the Office of Inspector General, the state of Texas accused the corporation of committing multiple Medicaid violations.
"You failed to prevent conditions that would allow the spread of infectious diseases among employees, as well as patients and the general public," the letter stated. "Specifically, you allowed individuals posing as commercial buyers of fetal body parts to handle bloody fetal tissue while wearing only gloves."
"Your staff were not trained in infection control and barrier precautions with regard to the handling of fetal blood and tissue or they failed to comply with the minimum standards that mandatory training requires with regard to these critical public health and safety issues," the document continued.
Last month, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear the appeals of the pro-life activists involved in CMP's undercover videos. The decision means that the previous court rulings against the CMP activists could be allowed to stand, which means they could have to pay heavy fines.
Samantha Kamman is a reporter for The Christian Post. She can be reached at: samantha.kamman@christianpost.com. Follow her on Twitter: @Samantha_Kamman
