Supreme court weighs SC effort to defund Planned Parenthood: 5 reactions from both sides

4. 'Attacks on sexual and reproductive health care' 

Alexis McGill Johnson, president and CEO of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America, reacted to the case challenging the South Carolina governor’s order prohibiting abortion facilities from participating in Medicaid. 

In a statement last week, the Planned Parenthood CEO claimed that “attacks on sexual and reproductive health care are only escalating because some people want to impose their own beliefs on everyone else.” 

Johnson claimed that banning Planned Parenthood from participating in Medicaid would deprive Americans access to “affordable health care,” such as birth control, STI testing and cancer screenings.

“You should have the freedom to decide what’s best for you — and for many Medicaid patients, that’s getting high-quality, affordable health care at Planned Parenthood health centers,” the leader of the nation’s largest abortion provider said. “The Supreme Court should take this opportunity to make that clear.”

Paige Johnson, the interim president and CEO of Planned Parenthood South Atlantic, also argued that low-income clients would “pay the price” if the Supreme Court decides that South Carolina can exclude abortion clinics from coverage under the government's healthcare program.

“Our health centers serve an irreplaceable role in the state’s health care system, providing birth control and cancer screenings to people who can’t afford those services anywhere else,” the interim president said in Planned Parenthood’s statement last week. 

“Government officials should never block people from getting health care or be able to decide which doctor you can or cannot see,” she continued. “We will never stop fighting for our patients and their right to choose their trusted health care provider.”