Attorneys general from 16 states have joined Planned Parenthood in their fight to overturn an Ohio law that prevents healthcare providers that offer abortion services from participating in publicly funded health programs.
In an amicus brief filed Wednesday, the attorneys general argued that the state law violates providers' constitutional rights because it pressures them not to provide abortion services by taking away funding for certain services.
Planned Parenthood of Greater Ohio sued the state's Department of Health in May 2016, claiming the law would limit patients' access to abortion services in the state.
The law has been on hold for the last year after a federal district court judge blocked its implementation due to Planned Parenthood's lawsuit. The state has appealed the decision.
The Ohio law proposes to remove funding for services related to screening for breast and cervical cancer, HIV and AIDS prevention, testing and treatment for sexual transmitted diseases and infant mortality prevention.
Since 2009, 15 other states have adopted laws to prohibit public funding against providers who perform abortions, according to the amicus brief.
“Health care providers should not have to choose between protecting a woman's right to reproductive health care, and providing other vital public health services – yet that's exactly what the Ohio state law, and so many other regressive measures around the country, seek to do,” New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman said.
