GOP senators ask HHS to let Indiana cut Planned Parenthood funding

The letter, spearheaded by Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah, was signed by 28 senators.

The Hill: GOP To HHS: Let States Cut Off Planned Parenthood
Twenty-eight Republican senators said Thursday that the Obama administration should not stop the state of Indiana from implementing a new law designed to cut off federal funding for Planned Parenthood. Earlier this month, the federal Medicaid agency denied Indiana's proposal to prevent state residents from using Medicaid at any entity that provides abortions (Baker, 6/9).

Louisville Courier Journal: Senate Republicans Ask Federal Government To Reconsider Indiana Medicaid Ruling
The letter was spearheaded by Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah, the top Republican on the Senate committee that oversees Medicaid and signed by 27 other Republicans, including Indiana Sens. Dan Coats and Richard Lugar. It asks the federal government to reconsider its rejection of the state law, which was signed by Gov. Mitch Daniels in May (Groppe, 6/9). 

CQ HealthBeat: GOP Senators Ask Berwick To Revisit Indiana Medicaid Plan
Republican senators on Thursday wrote to the head of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services asking that a decision to deny a Medicaid plan amendment in Indiana be reconsidered. ... Last month, CMS Administrator Donald M. Berwick said that Indiana's decision to bar contracts with any provider of abortion services, other than a hospital, violates federal Medicaid regulations (Norman, 6/9). 

Christian Science Monitor: Planned Parenthood Battle Signals Fresh Twist In Abortion War
The campaign against Planned Parenthood from Congress to Kansas is part of the broadest legislative attack against funding for abortion services since abortion became legal in 1973, say activists. Antiabortion legislation in Congress and the states is nothing new. But 11 states this year have targeted the funding of organizations that perform abortions, most notably Planned Parenthood, the nation's largest abortion provider (Guarino, 6/9). 

Meanwhile, two other states are also revising their abortion policies.

The Associated Press/Washington Post: Anti-Abortion Advocates Urge State Board Of Health To Model Va. Abortion Regulations After SC's
Virginia should model its abortion clinic regulations after stiff rules in South Carolina that already have withstood judicial scrutiny, anti-abortion advocates told the State Board of Health Thursday (6/9).

Birmingham News: Alabama Legislature Approves Bill To Ban Abortions After 20 Weeks Of Pregnancy
Lawmakers tonight gave final legislative approval to a bill that would ban anyone from performing an abortion on someone pregnant for 20 or more weeks, unless an abortion was needed to avoid the woman's death or serious risk of substantial bodily harm (White, 6/9).