Yesterday the federal government revoked Indiana's law that would have no longer allowed Medicaid patients from using Planned Parenthood clinics or others that perform elective abortions.

State legislatures in Kansas, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, and Wisconsin are considering similar bans on Medicaid funding, and the Indiana decision will likely affect how these plans proceed.

The state passed HEA 1210 last month, but any change in a state's Medicaid plan must be approved by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). CMS administrator Donald Berwick told Indiana that the funding ban was illegal. Berwick said in a letter to Indiana's Office of Medicaid Policy and Planning that states can limit the choices of Medicaid patients except when the choice involves family planning services. Berwick noted that the Indiana Legislative Services Agency stated this when it evaluated the plan in April.

While the federal statute governing the use of Medicaid providers does prohibit ...

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