New York State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman joined 15 other attorneys general Thursday in legal action against Ohio’s law that would defund Planned Parenthood.
The amicus brief filed with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit contends that the law violates the First Amendment and the right to receive contraceptive and other health services.
“We won’t stand by while a woman’s fundamental right to make her own reproductive health choices is under siege,” Schneiderman said in a statement.
The attorney general noted that the grants to Planned Parenthood and similar organizations pay for several life-saving services including education, breast cancer and cervical cancer screenings, HIV and AIDS prevention, STD testing and treatment, and infant mortality prevention.
The other jurisdictions joining in the effort are: California, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Mexico, Oregon, Vermont, Virginia, Washington state and the District of Columbia.
