Governor Henry McMaster of South Carolina issued a statement following the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in the case of Medina v. Planned Parenthood South Atlantic. The ruling supports South Carolina’s decision to exclude abortion providers from its Medicaid program.
“Seven years ago, we took a stand to protect the sanctity of life and defend South Carolina’s authority and values – and today, we are finally victorious,” stated Governor McMaster. He emphasized that “the legality of my executive order prohibiting taxpayer dollars from being used to fund abortion providers like Planned Parenthood has been affirmed by the highest court in the land.”
The legal battle began with Governor McMaster’s 2018 Executive Order instructing the South Carolina Department of Health and Human Services to remove abortion clinics from the state’s Medicaid provider list. A district court had previously blocked this exclusion, but the Supreme Court’s decision overturns that ruling, sending it back to the district court for further proceedings in line with their opinion.
Earlier this year, Governor McMaster submitted an amicus brief backing the state’s stance and was present at oral arguments before the Supreme Court in April.
