.(FamilyConservationPAC.com) – The Lone Star State sued the largest abortion provider in the country under the federal False Claims Act.
A Texas lawsuit seeks the recovery of millions of dollars in Medicaid payments for medical services and further financial penalties from Planned Parenthood.
The state is attempting to recover at least $17 million from the biggest abortion provider in the country, and a hearing before U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk has been scheduled for Tuesday, according to reports.
Texas wants Planned Parenthood to give back at least $17 million in Medicaid reimbursements — in a first-of-its-kind lawsuit by a state against the largest abortion provider in the United States. pic.twitter.com/Jw7yW4ZeNj
— The Recount (@therecount) August 15, 2023
Kacsmaryk nullified the FDA’s endorsement of the abortion drug mifepristone earlier this year.
Since the Supreme Court reversed Roe v. Wade last year, Texas has outlawed abortion except in cases where the mother’s life is in danger.
This is not the focus of the case against Planned Parenthood.
After years of Republican policies that withdrew funds and limited how its clinics could operate, Planned Parenthood argues the lawsuit is a fresh attempt to damage the organization.
Before 2021, when it was terminated from Texas’ Medicaid program, the group received funding for medical services.
Four years prior, the state had begun its efforts to shut down Planned Parenthood.
It is now suing for payment for the services rendered during that time.
According to Alexis McGill Johnson, president of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America, “this baseless case is an active effort to shut down Planned Parenthood health centers.”
Texas brought the action under the federal False Claims Act, which permits punishment for each suspected wrongful payment. Planned Parenthood claims this might lead to an over $1 billion judgment.
Republican Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who is now on leave while awaiting an impeachment trial scheduled for next month over accusations of bribery and abuse of power, filed the complaint last year.
Approximately thirty-two Planned Parenthood facilities are located in Texas.
However, one was forced to close after the landmark Supreme Court decision allowing individual states to regulate access to abortion.
Jacob Elberg, a former federal prosecutor focused on healthcare fraud, stated that he thought Texas’ case was weak and that the federal False Claims Act was the state’s strongest defense against health fraud.
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