Planned Parenthood files lawsuit to restore access to preventative care in SC

GREENVILLE, S.C. (FOX Carolina) - Planned Parenthood South Atlantic (PPSAT) filed a lawsuit to challenge state lawmakers’ attempts to prevent South Carolinians enrolled in Medicaid from receiving preventive care at its Columbia and Charleston health centers.

The filing is a request to amend its original 2018 complaint that challenges Governor Henry McMaster’s executive order blocking its health centers from participating in the state’s Medicaid program, as well as budget riders passed by the South Carolina General Assembly that seek to prevent federal funds from going to PPSAT.

“What started as a crusade against abortion has devolved into an even greater assault on essential, preventive care,” said Paige Johnson, President and CEO of Planned Parenthood South Atlantic. “The cost of this political attack will be the health and well-being of hardworking South Carolinians — cancers will go undetected, STIs will go untreated, and people won’t have the birth control they need to plan their futures. Planned Parenthood South Atlantic provides high-quality, comprehensive health care, and any attempt to remove our health centers as a care option for patients with Medicaid is not only blatantly political but unconstitutional.”

The PPSAT is also seeking emergency relief from the state’s actions that Medicaid patients can continue accessing essential preventive health services at its South Carolina health centers while the case continues.

Brandon Charochak, a spokesperson for Governor Henry McMaster, issued the following statement on the filing:

“The U.S. Supreme Court has made clear that South Carolina has the right to exclude abortion providers from our Medicaid program. Planned Parenthood’s latest filing is nothing more than a desperate, last-gasp attempt to relitigate an issue that has already been decided.”

According to officials, South Carolina has some of the highest rates and infant mortality in the nation. The South Carolina Department of Public Health said six in 10 South Carolinian adults suffer from a a chronic disease, and four in ten suffer from multiple chronic diseases, one of the highest rates in the country. South Carolina also faces high rates for various STIs, including syphilis and HIV, particularly among teenagers.

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