Medi-Cal Abortion Curbs Struck Down : Appeals Panel Rejects Budget Restrictions for 12th Straight Year

A state Court of Appeal on Wednesday once again struck down legislative budget restrictions on state-funded abortions, marking the 12th straight year the limitations have been invalidated by the courts.

The appeals panel said a ruling July 3 by the U.S. Supreme Court giving states more leeway to limit abortion had no effect on the California dispute. In a footnote, the panel said the federal ruling was “not controlling” in the case.

In a 3-0 decision, the panel ordered state officials to continue paying for abortions for low-income women under the Medi-Cal program. The court rejected the latest budget limits with a brief three-page opinion and attached a ruling it filed last year reaching the same conclusion on similar grounds.

State attorneys had conceded there was little hope the panel would uphold the restrictions in view of a 1981 ruling by the state Supreme Court invalidating similar limitations as a violation of the California Constitution.

But the state said it hoped to raise the issue again when the funding case reaches the state Supreme Court, contending that in view of the U.S. Supreme Court ruling, it would be “quite timely” for the state’s highest court to take another look at the question.

A spokesman for the state Department of Health Services declined comment pending study of Wednesday’s decision.

Margaret C. Crosby, an attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union representing a group of low-income women challenging the funding restrictions, welcomed the panel’s action “as recognition that the (U.S. Supreme Court) ruling has no effect on the California Constitution.”

“The state said that this would be a particularly good opportunity to raise the issue--but that’s just plain wrong,” said Crosby. “California women have an independent state right to abortion and we would expect the state Supreme Court to act in a principled fashion and uphold that right.”

The restrictions currently at issue were included in the 1989-90 budget signed last month by Gov. George Deukmejian. Had they gone into effect, they would have prohibited state funding for about 90% of the 85,000 abortions being performed annually under the Medi-Cal program. But, as in past years, the restrictions were barred from implementation by the appellate panel pending a ruling on their validity.

The limitations would allow state-funded abortions only in cases where the mother’s life was in danger, the pregnancy resulted from rape or incest, the unborn child was severely malformed or when unmarried minors had notified their parents.

The appeal court, citing the 1981 ruling by the state high court, said the restrictions violated the rights to privacy and equal protection of the law. Further, the panel said, the limitations conflicted with other provisions of the state Constitution restricting bills to a “single subject.” The Legislature improperly used the Budget Act--which is used for appropriations--to try to make substantive changes in separate statutes authorizing unrestricted abortion under the Medi-Cal program, the panel said.

The unsigned opinion was issued by Appellate Justices J. Anthony Kline, Jerome A. Smith and J. Clinton Peterson.