Gov. Asa Hutchinson (R, AR) terminating contracts with Arkansas Planned Parenthood.

Elections matter.

Gov. Asa Hutchinson has directed the Department of Human Services to terminate Medicaid contracts with Planned Parenthood. “Termination will be effective thirty days from the date of the letter attached,” Hutchinson said in statement. The feds have recently told two other states that this maneuver violates federal law [Actually, they said ‘may.’ See below – ML].

You think that a Democratic governor Mike Ross (the guy Asa Hutchinson beat last year) would have done this, if the vote had gone the other way last year? – No, me neither. Ross certainly wouldn’t have provoked a possible showdown with the feds. And note that the correct term is ‘possible:’ contra that link above, the reality of the situation is that the federal government is carefully saying that the states may be violating federal law.

“CMS has notified states who have taken action to terminate their Medicaid provider agreements with Planned Parenthood that they may be in conflict with federal law,” Department of Health and Human Services spokesman Ben Wakana said in a statement.

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