WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) – On Wednesday, a major healthcare battle was in front of the Supreme Court. The justices are weighing a case that centers on whether states can block Medicaid dollars from being used at Planned Parenthood.  The issue came to the Supreme Court from South Carolina, where Go vernor Henry McMaster is trying to prevent government health insurance money from going to clinics that provide abortions, even if they also provide other healthcare services.  "South Carolina stands for the right to life, and we'll do whatever is necessary to protect it," McMaster said.  McMaster was in the court alongside lawyers with the Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), who argued on behalf of South Carolina.  Outside of the court, competing protesters rallied on the steps.  Gabriella McIntyre, legal counsel for ADF, was among those demonstrators.  "The American people don't want their tax dollars being used to prop up the abortion industry," McIntyre said.  It's already illegal for Medicaid to pay for abortions, with rare exceptions. Molly Rivera with Planned Parenthood South Atlantic says if the court sides with South Carolina, it will hurt Medicaid patients who rely on their clinics for other critical services.  "This is about general preventative basic healthcare," Rivera said. "For a lot of people there won't be another affordable option to get primary preventative care." Dr. Ashley Jeanlus is an OBGYN who says it would be devastating for Medicaid patients to lose access to Planned Parenthood.  "They'll have a harder time getting access to birth control, STI testing, pap smears, cancer screening," Jeanlus said. She warns that people on Medicaid already have limited healthcare access.  "Those are our most marginalized communities. Low income, people of color. They deserve to be able to pick who their providers are," Jeanlus said.  But McIntyre argues there are a lot of other healthcare providers that would better serve people on Medicaid.  "The states need to be free to direct their funding, that limited taxpayer funding to real comprehensive healthcare," McIntyre said.  A decision in the case is expected by summer.  ...read more read less