Washington: Planned Parenthood could be forced to repay as much as $1.8 billion in Medicaid funds following a whistleblower lawsuit currently before the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals. The case, Doe v. Planned Parenthood, alleges that the organization improperly received taxpayer reimbursements after Texas and Louisiana revoked its Medicaid eligibility over allegations of fetal tissue sales.
The controversy traces back to undercover videos released in 2015 that appeared to show Planned Parenthood affiliates engaged in the sale of fetal tissue and organs. In response, Texas and Louisiana sought to cut the organization from Medicaid. Planned Parenthood challenged the move in court, and while litigation dragged on, it continued to file reimbursement claims.
In 2020, the 5th Circuit ultimately upheld the states’ right to terminate the group’s Medicaid contracts. But by then, millions in taxpayer funds had already been paid out. A whistleblower lawsuit filed in 2021 under the federal False Claims Act argues that those reimbursements were fraudulent and must be repaid in full, along with treble damages and penalties, bringing the potential liability to $1.8 billion.
Jennie Bradley Lichter, president of the March for Life Education and Defense Fund, called the case an “existential threat” to the nation’s largest abortion provider. “Under the False Claims Act, money obtained from the government while ineligible even if collected under a court order that is later overturned must be repaid in full,” she wrote in The Hill.
Pro-life groups say the lawsuit underscores long-standing concerns about taxpayer funding for Planned Parenthood. “The whistleblower in this case is suing on behalf of the people to recover taxpayer dollars Planned Parenthood had no right to take,” said Katie Glenn Daniel, legal affairs director for Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America. “This is the largest abortion business in the nation, billing Medicaid for years after being disqualified by Texas and Louisiana.”
Planned Parenthood has rejected the claims as politically motivated. Susan Baker Manning, general counsel for Planned Parenthood Federation of America, said the lawsuit’s legal theory is unfounded. “This theory is yet another effort to weaponize the law to attack Planned Parenthood,” Manning said. “This case has one goal: to shut down Planned Parenthood and deny patients access to sexual and reproductive health care.”
The Medicaid lawsuit comes at a time of mounting challenges for Planned Parenthood. As part of a recent tax package, the federal government has already cut some of its funding, leading to more than 40 clinic closures this year. Earlier this year, The New York Times reported on alleged medical negligence at several of its New York affiliates.
For critics, the lawsuit represents a long-awaited accountability measure. For Planned Parenthood, it could threaten its very survival. With billions of dollars at stake and the wider political battle over abortion intensifying, the outcome of Doe v. Planned Parenthood may prove to be one of the most consequential legal fights in the organization’s history.