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Welcome to “The Quickie” — Planned Parenthood Action Fund’s daily tipsheet on the top health care & reproductive rights stories of the day. You can read “The Quickie'' online here.

In today’s Quickie: PP moves for decision in baseless TX Medicaid lawsuit, IL fast tracks protections for abortion and gender affirming care, and ballot initiatives are a promising path to protect abortion access!

PLANNED PARENTHOOD MOVES FOR DECISION IN BASELESS TEXAS MEDICAID LAWSUIT: Last Friday night, Planned Parenthood affiliates in Texas and Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA) asked a U.S. district court judge to rule in their favor in an ongoing baseless lawsuit. The state of Texas and an anonymous plaintiff are suing Planned Parenthood for more than $1.8 billion, falsely alleging that the affiliates defrauded the state's Medicaid system by getting reimbursed for cancer screenings, birth control, and other basic health care services that federal and state courts explicitly said they could provide.

As the motions for summary judgment from both PPFA (read here) and the Texas Planned Parenthood affiliates (read here) detail, Planned Parenthood did not commit Medicaid fraud. The politically motivated lawsuit has no basis in fact and is an abuse of power by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, Attorney General Ken Paxton, and their extremist allies — a desperate attempt to shut down Planned Parenthood and eliminate affordable health care options for Texans. As Planned Parenthood South Texas President and CEO Laura Terrill told The 19th in a new story published this morning,

“This is about controlling people’s bodies and lives. It is not enough here in Texas to simply ban abortion, but now the state is shutting down health care providers and preventing them from meeting the health care needs of Texans,” Terrill said.

The 19th also spoke with Boston University health law professor Nicole Huberfeld:

“I see this as harassment litigation — it appears to have no other purpose. A judge should consider it frivolous, but that may not occur with sympathetic courts,” she said of the Texas suit.

Read more from The 19th here, see Planned Parenthood’s statement on summary judgment and the court filings here, and click here for additional information about the myriad political attacks on health care and reproductive freedom through the legal system.

ILLINOIS FAST TRACKS PROTECTIONS FOR ABORTION, GENDER AFFIRMING CARE: On Friday, the Illinois House approved a fast-tracked bill that would offer further protections for abortion and gender-affirming care. The Patient and Provider Protection Act (PAPPA) would, among other positive provisions, protect providers of abortion and gender-affirming care from aggressive out-of-state litigation; expand the range of abortion services provided by advanced practice clinicians; and create a pathway for out-of-state medical staff to be quickly licensed for reproductive health care in Illinois. The legislation is slated to be heard in the Senate shortly and expected to be on Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s desk by the end of January. In a statement, Planned Parenthood Illinois Action president and CEO Jennifer Welch said of PAPPA, 

“This crucial piece of legislation provides protections for providers and patients to improve access to reproductive and gender affirming health care, ensuring that our state remains a haven in the Midwest. PAPPA is an important step in the work that needs to be done. Because of the ever shifting national landscape since Roe was overturned, attacks on bodily autonomy are increasing. We support PAPPA because all people should have the freedom to make medical decisions that are best for their bodies, their lives and their families.”

Read more from the Associated Press.

BALLOT INITIATIVES: “A PROMISING NEW PATH TO PROTECT ABORTION ACCESS”: Over the weekend, the New York Times Editorial Board highlighted the power of ballot initiatives in protecting abortion access across the country. Just over a month after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, Kansans came out strongly for abortion rights, defending abortion access in their state constitution via a ballot initiative. This set the stage for the 2022 midterm elections where abortion rights advocates won all five abortion ballot initiatives last November. They defeated two anti-abortion initiatives in Montana and Kentucky and enshrined this fundamental right into the state constitutions of Michigan, California, and Vermont. Planned Parenthood advocacy and political organizations and partner organizations worked hand-in-hand to activate and educate voters about each of these initiatives in the weeks and months leading up to Nov. 8. In every campaign, voters from across the political spectrum showed up to affirm their support for abortion rights, protecting access to critical health services. 

Abortion rights ballot initiatives will continue to be an important part of advocates’ strategy to protect access to reproductive health care services across the country, especially in states where the legislatures and governors are hostile to reproductive rights. Several states are currently exploring abortion-related ballot initiatives including Ohio, Colorado, and Missouri. 

Read more at the New York Times. See Planned Parenthood Action Fund’s memo on abortion rights victories in the 2022 midterms here.

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