Planned Parenthood wins a legal battle in Missouri and launches another in Ohio

Rss@dailykos.com (laura Clawson) · Thursday, May 12, 2016, 8:51 pm

Planned Parenthood won a court victory in Missouri on Wednesday, the same day that it sued the state of Ohio. The fact that the previous sentence refers to court battles in two different states over two different laws attacking Planned Parenthood says a lot about the broader war on women’s health care in Republican-controlled states.

Missouri officials had tried to take away a Planned Parenthood clinic’s abortion license the same day its doctor lost hospital privileges, without giving the clinic a chance to come back into compliance with the requirement.

The agency's actions "likely were the result of political pressure being exerted by Missouri legislators and the Department's perception that if it did not act in accordance with the legislature's desires, its budget would be cut," [U.S. District Judge Nanette] Laughrey said in the ruling.

She went on to say that "disparate treatment" of the clinic "cannot be justified by political pressure or public opposition." She ordered that the license cannot be revoked before its expiration in June.

Political pressure? You think? Meanwhile, in Ohio, Planned Parenthood is suing to block a law signed by Gov. John Kasich in February that blocks funding for organizations that provide abortions, even though the funding is for services completely unrelated to abortion. The lawsuit charges retaliation, which is kind of undeniable, as is the fact that the law’s ultimate effect will be to make it harder for low-income women to get care.

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