Oklahoma Asks Supreme Court to Unblock Family Planning Funds

Oklahoma asked the US Supreme Court to restore federal funding for family planning services that were stripped from the state after it refused to say if it would require its health providers to give abortion referrals.

In an emergency request directed to Justice Neil Gorsuch on Wednesday, Oklahoma said it needs an injunction to stop the Health and Human Services Department from denying the state the $4.5 million or so it would normally get in Title X funding for 2024. It asked the justices to act by Aug. 30.

Title X of the Public Health Act provides public and private health providers with funding for family planning services. Oklahoma said it uses the funding for a range of family planning methods that include infertility services and services for adolescents. The state said it disperses the money to 70 city and county health departments.

Title X prohibits funding for abortions.

The state argues the federal government can’t force it to provide abortion referrals under the Spending Clause of the Constitution when Title X doesn’t address referrals.

Oklahoma also argues HHS is violating an amendment that protects health care organizations who decline to provide abortion referrals from being discriminated against under Title X.

Instead of an injunction, Oklahoma said the justices could alternatively put on hold the federal government’s decision to give the state’s funding to other entities.

Gorsuch is the justice assigned to the US Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, which denied Oklahoma’s request for a preliminary injunction. Gorsuch can act alone or refer the state’s emergency request to the full court for review.

The case is Oklahoma v. U.S. Dep’t of Health & Human Servs., U.S., No. 24A146, 8/7/24.