A lawsuit filed Thursday seeks to overturn Michigan’s longstanding ban on taxpayer-funded abortions for low-income residents, arguing it cannot stand after voters approve a sweeping constitutional amendment in 2022 guaranteeing access to the medical procedure.
The lawsuit came just two days after a judge, citing the same amendment, a waiting period of 24 hours and other abortion-related restrictions that remain in Michigan law.
Michigan’s Medicaid program provides coverage for childbirth, contraception and sterilization, “but denies coverage to patients who decide to exercise their constitutional right to an abortion,” the lawsuit says.
“Many low-income individuals do not have enough money to cover the unexpected costs of terminating an unintended pregnancy and are forced to obtain funding for their abortion from multiple sources,” the lawsuit says. “This can delay access to care, which in turn can increase health risks and the cost of that care.”
The lawsuit was filed on behalf of YWCA Kalamazoo, an organization that pays for abortions for women in the Kalamazoo area who are enrolled in the Medicaid health insurance program.
“No one should be denied reproductive health care based on who they are or how much money they have,” said Susan Rosas, the organization’s executive director.
The American Civil Liberties Union and the law firm Goodwin Procter are representing YWCA Kalamazoo. They said abortion and related services are available through Medicaid in 17 states.
Michigan’s Medicaid program only pays for abortions to save a woman’s life or to end pregnancies resulting from rape or incest.
Right to Life of Michigan, which opposes abortion, criticized the lawsuit.
“Abortion-obsessed activists are once again calling on the courts to achieve what they have failed to gain support for in the legislative process,” the organization said.
Abortion rights were added to the Michigan Constitution with nearly 57% of voters in 2022, months after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, leaving the issue up to each state.
For decades, taxpayer-funded abortions have been banned, regardless of which political party holds power in the Michigan legislature or governor.
