Federal appeals court says Texas, Louisiana can end Planned Parenthood funding

NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana — A federal appeals court has ruled that Texas and Louisiana can cut off funding to Planned Parenthood.

Monday’s decision by a majority of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reverses earlier rulings in two longstanding fights over abortion.

Opponents of legal abortion have long sought to deny federal Medicaid funding for Planned Parenthood because some Planned Parenthood affiliates perform them.

Abortion rights supporters and advocates for women’s health have argued that cutting off Medicaid funding for the organization would also reduce poor women’s access to a variety of vital non-abortion health services.