Illinois ex rel. Illinois Department of Public Aid v. United States Department of Health & Human Services

594 F. Supp. 147, 1984 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 15142, 7 Soc. Serv. Rev. 476
District Court, N.D. Illinois·Decided July 7, 1984·No. No. 82 C 4170·Published·Cited by 1 cases

Opinion

MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER

PLUNKETT, District Judge.

The State of Illinois, by the Illinois Department of Public Aid (“Plaintiff”), brings this action against the United States Department of Health and Human Services and Margaret M. Heckler,1 as Secretary of Health and Human Services (collectively “Defendants”), seeking reversal of Defendants’ decision disallowing $965,399.00 in “federal financial participation” claimed by Plaintiff under the Medicaid program (“Medicaid”), Title XIX of the Social Security Act, 42 U.S.C. § 1396 et seq. (“Title XIX”), for the costs of certain abortion services. Jurisdiction's based on 28 U.S.C. § 1331 and is not contested. Presently before the court are the parties’ cross-motions for summary judgment. For the reasons set forth below, Defendants’ motion is granted, and Plaintiff’s motion is denied.

Background

Medicaid, the purpose of which is to make medical, care available to the poor, is, to use the now familiar phrase, a system of “cooperative federalism.” See King v. Smith, 392 U.S. 309, 316, 88 S.Ct. 2128, 2132, 20 L.Ed.2d 1118 (1968) (applying the term to the Aid to Families With Dependent Children program). Although a state is not required to establish a Medicaid program, if it chooses to do so, and if the program which it develops satisfies the requirements of the applicable federal statutes and regulations, then the state is entitled to federal reimbursement for a certain percentage of its expenditures under its program. See 42 U.S.C. §§ 1396, 1396a, 1396b.

Since September 30, 1976, an important exception to the general availability of federal funds to reimburse the states for Medicaid expenditures has been contained in the so-called “Hyde Amendment.” Enact[150] ed annually (in somewhat different versions) as an amendment to the applicable appropriations bill, the Hyde Amendment sharply restricts federal funding of abortion services. The original version of the Hyde Amendment stated , that “[n]one of the funds contained in this Act [the appropriations bill] shall be used to perform abortions except where the life of the mother would be endangered if the fetus were carried to term.” Pub.L. No. 94-439, § 209, 90 Stat'. 1434 (1976). The other version of the Hyde Amendment which is relevant to the present case provided that no federal funds:

shall be used to perform abortions except where the life of the mother would be endangered if the fetus were carried to term; or except for such medical procedures necessary for the victims of rape or incest, when such rape or incest has been reported promptly to a law enforcement agency or public health service; or except in those instances where severe and long-lasting physical health damage to the mother would result if the pregnancy were carried to term when so determined by two physicians.

Pub.L. No. 95-205, § 101, 91 Stat. 1460 (1977); Pub.L. No. 95-480, § 210, 92 Stat. 1586 (1978).2

Immediately following the original enactment of the Hyde Amendment, its constitutionality was challenged in an action brought in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York, in which the Secretary of Health, Education and Welfare3 was the defendant. On October 22,1976, the Honorable John F. Dooling entered a preliminary injunction forbidding the Secretary from enforcing the Hyde Amendment and requiring him to continue to provide federal reimbursement for abortion services under the standards which were applicable before the Hyde Amendment was enacted. McRae v. Mathews, 421 F.Supp. 533 (E.D.N.Y.1976). The injunction applied throughout the nation. 421 F.Supp. at 543. On appeal, however, the Supreme Court vacated the injunction on June 29,1977 and remanded the case for further consideration in light of two cases which the Supreme Court had decided after Judge Dooling had issued his order. Califano v. McRae, 433 U.S. 916, 97 S.Ct. 2993, 53 L.Ed.2d 1103 (1977).

On remand, Judge Dooling entered a temporary restraining order, substantially similar to his earlier preliminary injunction, on July 28, 1977, and he vacated that order on August 4, until September 1978. On January 15, 1980, Judge Dooling issued a voluminous opinion and entered judgment in favor of the plaintiffs. McRae v. Califano, 491 F.Supp. 630 (E.D.N.Y.1980). Judge Dooling first concluded that the Hyde Amendment had substantively amended Title XIX, thus “relieving the states of the duty to include in their plans provision ... for medically necessary abortions.” 491 F.Supp. at 732-733. Judge Dooling went on to hold, however, that the Hyde Amendment was unconstitutional. 491 F.Supp. at 742. Accordingly, Judge Dooling ordered the Secretary to provide federal funds to the states for Medicaid expenditures for medically necessary abortions.

A little more than five months later, though, the Supreme Court reversed Judge Dooling’s decision. Harris v. McRae, 448 U.S. 297, 100 S.Ct. 2671, 65 L.Ed.2d 784 (1980). Although the Court declined to decide whether the Hyde Amendment had substantively amended Title XIX, 448 U.S. at 310 n. 14, 100 S.Ct. at 2684 n. 14, it first concluded “that Title XIX does not require a participating State to pay for those medically necessary abortions for which federal reimbursement is unavailable under the Hyde Amendment.” 448 U.S. at 311, 100 S.Ct. at 2685 (footnote omitted). The Court then held “that the funding restrictions of the Hyde Amendment violate neither the Fifth Amendment nor the Establishment [151] Clause of the First Amendment,” and “that the appellees lack standing to raise a challenge to the Hyde Amendment under the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment.” 448 U.S. at 326-327, 100 S.Ct. at 2693.

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Illinois ex rel. Illinois Department of Public Aid v. United States Department of Health & Human Services, 594 F. Supp. 147, 1984 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 15142, 7 Soc. Serv. Rev. 476 (N.D. Ill. 1984).

594 F. Supp. 147 (Illinois ex rel. Illinois Department of Public Aid v. United States Department of Health & Human Services) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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