Missouri Gov. Mike Parson, a Republican, signed legislation Thursday to cut Planned Parenthood from the state’s Medicaid program. The bill would make Missouri the latest state to block Medicaid funding for the organization, joining Arkansas, Mississippi, and Texas. “Our administration has been the strongest pro-life administration in Missouri history,” Parson said, according to the Associated Press. “We’ve ended all elective abortions in this state, approved new support for mothers, expecting mothers, and children, and, with this bill, ensured that we are not sending taxpayer dollars to abortion providers for any purpose,” he added. BREAKING: Missouri Governor Mike parson just signed a bill to defund Planned Parenthood.https://t.co/Ar24PWtQnv pic.twitter.com/rvE2IqO3AK — LifeNews.com (@LifeNewsHQ) May 9, 2024 From the Associated Press: In Missouri, Republicans have tried for years to block Medicaid funding from going to Planned Parenthood clinics because of its association with abortion. That has continued even though Planned Parenthood no longer performs abortions in Missouri. A state law prohibiting most abortions took effect after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned a nationwide right to abortion in June 2022. Defunding efforts in the state have been repeatedly thwarted in the courts. A February Missouri Supreme Court ruling found that lawmakers’ latest attempt at defunding Planned Parenthood was unconstitutional. “This bill not only defies the ruling of Missouri’s highest court but also flouts federal Medicaid law,” the region’s Planned Parenthood center said in a statement. “By denying Medicaid patients’ right to receive health care from Planned Parenthood, politicians are directly obstructing access to much-needed health services, including birth control, cancer screenings, annual wellness exams, and STI testing and treatment.” Missouri Planned Parenthood plans to continue treating Medicaid patients at no cost, according to the organization. Missouri Republicans pass bill to defund Planned Parenthood, other abortion businesses READ MORE: https://t.co/0ivwipFrwB#Missouri #abortion #ProLife #Republicans #news pic.twitter.com/gzugN3WeSi — LifeSiteNews (@LifeSite) May 3, 2024 LifeNews wrote: Prior to 2020, Missouri restricted family planning funds to abortion providers through the budget process. In 2020, Planned Parenthood and others filed suit against that defunding process and the Missouri Supreme Court agreed that it was unconstitutional but also stated that the defunding could be done by placing the pro-life protective language in statute. The legislature has now successfully placed the pro-life language, which will go into effect at the end of August, in statute. In December, Planned Parenthood staff in Missouri were filmed by Project Veritas, stating that they would take minor girls across state lines for abortions without their parents’ knowledge or consent. In February, Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey filed suit against Planned Parenthood for violations of Missouri laws. In their recently released 2022-2023 annual report, Planned Parenthood reported total income of over 2 billion dollars. For the year the annual report covers, Planned Parenthood performed 392,715 abortions, or about 4 in 10 abortions, and abortions outnumbered prenatal care 62 to 1. In addition, according to their report, Planned Parenthood boosted its abortion numbers by facilitating “transportation and travel support, financial assistance, and referrals.” Watch the Project Veritas report below: BREAKING PART ONE MOM CAN’T KNOW: Planned Parenthood (@PPFA) Transports Minors Across State Lines for Secret Abortions “We never tell the parents anything.” – Managing Director, Kansas City, Missouri RT & SHARE #SecretAbortions pic.twitter.com/TxtK2K2kFM — Project Veritas (@Project_Veritas) December 21, 2023