Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel has obtained a preliminary injunction from the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, stopping the Trump Administration from enforcing a section of the recent federal budget bill known as the “Defund Provision.” This provision would have prevented certain health centers, including Planned Parenthood, from receiving federal Medicaid reimbursements. These centers provide healthcare services such as cancer screenings, STI testing and treatment, and birth control to low-income patients.
“Unlawfully defunding the health clinics that Michiganders rely on – especially those living in Northern Michigan’s healthcare deserts – would have left residents without access to essential care,” Nessel said. “I am relieved that the Court saw the Trump Administration’s effort for what it was: another illegal political tactic aimed at undermining the healthcare people need. I will continue to fight back against such actions that harm our state.”
Nessel joined 22 other attorneys general and Pennsylvania in filing a lawsuit against the Defund Provision on July 29. The coalition later filed for a preliminary injunction on September 24. In its decision, the district court stated that:
The States are likely to succeed on the merits. The Court held that the Defund Provision likely fails to provide clear notice of the full scope of providers that qualify as “prohibited entities,” as required by the Spending Clause of the U.S Constitution. In addition, the Court held that the Defund Provision likely acts as an unlawful retroactive condition because it constitutes a change that the States could not have anticipated when joining Medicaid.
The Defund Provision would result in irreparable harm to the States if allowed to stay in effect.
The balance of equities and the public interest weighs in favor of the States.
In a related case on September 11, 2025, Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc. v. Kennedy, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit granted a request from the Trump Administration to stay another district court order blocking enforcement of this provision. That ruling allows enforcement while appeals proceed.