TOPEKA, Kansas – Governor Sam Brownback Wednesday has ordered all state funds to Planned Parenthood be cut.

Brownback’s office said in a news release he has directed Kansas Department of Health and Environment Secretary Susan Mosier to ensure no taxpayer money goes to Planned Parenthood through the Kansas Medicaid program.

The letter directs also to cut state funding to any other individual providers affiliated with Planned Parenthood.

Click here to read the full text of Brownback’s letter.

In a statement released by the governor office, Brownback said, “Planned Parenthood’s trafficking of baby body parts is antithetical to our belief in human dignity. No longer will we send the money of hard-working Kansas to fund an industry that disrespects life and violates the moral conscience of our people.”

Planned Parenthood of Kansas and Missouri spokesperson Elise Higgins said the governor’s decision is a “smoke-and-mirrors attempt to distract from his failed fiscal policies.”

In a news release, Laura McQuade, the organizations president and CEO, said, “We refuse to serve as the Governor’s scapegoat while Kansas faces serious funding challenges in light of his weak and ineffectual fiscal policies.  His plans to cut Medicaid to PPDM will result in a legal battle which Kansas simply cannot afford to fight.”

To view the complete Planned Parenthood news release, click here.

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