Planned Parenthood, in conjunction with the American Medical Associationand other healthcare providers, has petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court to reverse the Trump administration’s ban on Title X programs receiving federal funding for abortions.

The petition emerged in light of conflicting decisions from the Fourth and Ninth Circuits. The Fourth Circuit determined that Title X programs should receive funding and that the Trump administration’s rule, called “Protect Life,” was illegal. The Ninth Court, however, upheld the rule.

When Trump signed the new restrictions into law in 2019, Planned Parenthood and several other nonprofits left the Title X program in order to continue providing abortions. Nearly 1,000 Title X sites shuttered their doors as a result, while Planned Parenthood saw a 21% decrease in annual patients, according to The Christian Post.

“Restricting the information that physicians can provide to their Title X patients blocks honest, informed conversations about all health care options—an unconscionable violation that is essentially a gag rule,” said Dr. Susan Bailey, president of the AMA. “As physicians and leaders in medicine, we are fighting against the government’s intrusion in the exam room while protecting open communication between patients and physicians, which is the foundation of high-quality medical care.”

Planned Parenthood also believes the “Protect Life” rule hurts minorities, stating that “people who have always faced systemic barriers to health care—including those in rural areas, as well as black, Latino, and indigenous communities—have suffered the most. Health care should never come down to how much you earn or where you live.”

However, pro-life advocates applauded the rule for its work to divert taxpayer funds and “stay out of the abortion business,” according to Marjorie Dannenfelse, president of the Susan B. Anthony List.

“Women have the most to gain from this news,” she said in 2019. “With community health alternatives vastly outnumbering Planned Parenthood facilities nationwide, on average, these health centers would see an additional two clients per week. This is a huge win for women’s health.”

Two factors may determine the fate of the petition: Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett’s presumptive appointment to the Court and the presidential election. Barrett has a long history of conservative opinions on abortion while Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden has pledged to overturn the “Protect Life” rule and restore federal funding to Planned Parenthood

The following is from Pro Life Across America

  • 18 days from conception, heart begins to beat, with the baby’s own blood.
  • 28 days from conception a baby has eyes, ears, and even a tongue!
  • 28 days from conception: Muscles are developing along the future spine. Arms and legs are budding.
  • 30 days: Child has grown 10,000 times to 6-7mm (1/4”) long. Brain has human proportions. Blood flows in veins.
  • 42 days: Skeleton is formed. Brain coordinates movement of muscles and organs. Reflex responses have begun.
  • 42 days: Brain waves can be detected, the jaw forms, including teeth and taste buds. The unborn baby begins to swallow amniotic fluid. Fingers and toes are developing.
  • 45 days from conception: The unborn baby is making body movements, a full 12 weeks before the mother may notice such stirrings. By seven weeks the chest and abdomen are fully formed. Swimming with a natural swimmer’s stroke in the amniotic fluid, the baby now looks like a miniature human infant.
  • 44-45 days: Buds of milk teeth appear, and the unborn baby’s facial muscles develop. Eyelids begin to form, protecting the developing eyes. Elbows take shape. Internal organs are present, but immature. 99% of muscles are present, each with its own nerve supply.
  • 52 Days: Spontaneous movement begins. The unborn baby then develops a whole collection of moves over the next 4 weeks including hiccuping, frowning, squinting, furrowing the brow, pursing the lips, moving individual arms and legs, head turning, touching his/her face, breathing (without air), stretching, opening the mouth, yawning and sucking.                                                                                                                                                                                                                I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvelous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.My substance was not hid from thee, when I was made in secret, and curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect; and in thy book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of them. Psalms 139:14-16