Missouri judge hands Planned Parenthood a Medicaid win

ST. LOUIS — A judge has rejected Missouri lawmakers' effort to stop Planned Parenthood from receiving any public funding.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported Cole County Judge Jon Beetem ruled Wednesday that the funding restrictions were unconstitutional.

At issue was a bill passed by the Republican-led Legislature and signed by GOP Gov. Mike Parson in February to stop reimbursing Planned Parenthood for health care for low-income Medicaid patients.

While the state's Medicaid program doesn't reimburse for abortions, Planned Parenthood did seek reimbursements for other medical procedures. The group said in March, when it sued the state, that Missouri was ending reimbursements for birth control, cancer screenings, sexually transmitted disease testing and treatment, and other non-abortion care.

Yamelsie Rodriguez, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood of the St. Louis Region and Southwest Missouri, celebrated the decision, which Planned Parenthood said affirmed a 2020 ruling by the Missouri Supreme Court.

"The Missouri legislature's open disregard for precedent and state law has failed, again," she said in a statement.

Chris Nuelle, a spokesman for the Attorney General's Office, did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Post-Dispatch or The Associated Press.