Constitutional Law Keyed to Cohen
Rust v. Sullivan
Facts
Title X of the Public Health Service Act (the Act) was enacted by Congress to provide federal funding for family-planning services. In 1988, the Secretary of Health and Human Services (the Secretary) outlined more specific guidance as to how the funds were to be used and that abortion was not to be considered a method of family planning, acceptable to the use of the funds. The Petitioners, Rust and others (Petitioners), brought suit, seeking injunctive relief against the implementation of the regulations, based on their First Amendment constitutional rights to political expression. They felt that the Act was unconstitutional because they suppressed their abilities to proscribe treatments, which aligned with their own political views. The District Court granted summary judgment for the Department of Health and Human Services and the Second Circuit Affirmed. The Supreme Court of the United States (Supreme Court) granted certiorari.
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