DETROIT - The ACLU of Michigan, the American Civil Liberties Union, and the law firm Goodwin Procter today asked the Michigan Court of Appeals to overturn a lower court’s decision and reinstate our case, YWCA of Kalamazoo v. State of Michigan, a challenge to Michigan’s unjust ban on Medicaid coverage of abortion. The appeal was filed following the Michigan Court of Claims’ dismissal of the case on July 3, on the grounds that our clients lack the required legal standing.
The ACLU of Michigan, the ACLU, and our partners took action on behalf of YWCA of Kalamazoo because the current law, passed in the 1980s, blocks Michigan Medicaid from covering abortion care for the low-income people the program insures and therefore violates the Michigan Constitution. In 2022, Michigan voters overwhelmingly passed Proposal 3 to amend the state constitution and guarantee the right to make all decisions related to pregnancy, including abortion. The outdated coverage ban discriminates against people based on their constitutionally protected decision to have an abortion and on the basis of their sex.
More than 3 million people are enrolled in Michigan’s Medicaid programs, which provide comprehensive health care services for people with low incomes. Michigan Medicaid programs provide coverage for almost all aspects of reproductive health care, including birth control, preventative care, and pregnancy- and childbirth-related care. However, state law prohibits Medicaid from covering abortions and related care, except in very limited circumstances. The coverage ban also creates a two-tiered system: those with low incomes must pay out of pocket to access abortion care, while those with higher incomes typically enjoy private insurance that now covers abortion care. Notably, the decision being appealed today did not address the main constitutional questions at issue in YWCA’s lawsuit. Rather, it held that YWCA of Kalamazoo did not have “standing,”—in other words, it wasn’t the right party—to bring these constitutional claims. But YWCA has both a unique and substantial interest in challenging state laws that deny Medicaid coverage for vital reproductive health care. YWCA operates a fund which uses charitable dollars to help people in Kalamazoo County cover the cost of abortion care, the very care that Michigan Medicaid denies to the poorest Michiganders.
Bonsitu Kitaba, ACLU of Michigan Acting Legal Director had this to say:
“We are hopeful that a higher court will recognize the YWCA’s clear interest in vindicating the reproductive rights of all Michiganders and thus hasten a resolution of this issue that is critical to the health and financial well-being of pregnant Michiganders. While the dismissal of our case delays justice for the hundreds of thousands of Michiganders who rely on Medicaid for their reproductive health care, we will continue to fight to protect the constitutional right to this essential care.”
Ryan Mendias, staff attorney for the ACLU’s Reproductive Freedom Project, added:
"Michiganders overwhelmingly voted to protect the right to reproductive freedom in their state constitution, ushering in a wave of similar ballot measure victories across the country. Now, Michigan must fulfill the guarantees of the Reproductive Freedom Amendment for all Michiganders, regardless of how much money they make or the type of health insurance they have. The court must vindicate the rights that Michiganders voted for and strike down the state's ban on Medicaid coverage of abortion, which unconstitutionally puts this essential care out of reach for far too many low-income people in Michigan."
Read our appeal here.