1. United States
2. Wash.
3. Letter

The recent Supreme Court ruling upheld South Carolina's ability to exclude qualified Planned Parenthood clinics from the state's Medicaid program, This ruling strips low-income Americans, who disproportionately rely on Planned Parenthood for essential preventive care, of their ability to choose their provider.   Congress should act to explicitly enshrine in federal law the right for Medicaid patients to challenge state laws that improperly restrict their access to qualified medical providers for lawful, reimbursable services. We need clear legislation to protect beneficiaries' freedom to seek care at the providers of their choice without ideological interference by states.   I’m asking you to please stand up for low-income Americans by initiating and supporting legislation that unambiguously protects the rights of Medicaid beneficiaries to access any qualified provider for covered medical services.