A federal appeals court allowed the Trump administration to move forward with its plan to stop providing Medicaid reimbursements to large abortion providers, including Planned Parenthood, for now.

The ruling overturned a lower court's decision and keeps alive the controversy driven by Trump and Republican allies, who this summer banned state Medicaid payments to the organization for a year.

The measure is part of a package of domestic and fiscal policies promoted by the Administration and has drawn criticism from reproductive rights groups, who consider the suspension of funds a direct attack on women's health.

Federal law already prohibited Medicaid funds from financing abortions, but the new measure affects other Planned Parenthood services, including primary care.

The unanimous vote by Judges Gustavo A. Gelpi, Lara E. Montecalvo, and Seth R. Aframe allows the temporary suspension of federal reimbursements for those services, a financial setback for the organization.

Planned Parenthood filed a lawsuit alleging that the measure appeared designed to affect only the largest abortion providers and could limit the provision of services. Federal judges have issued mixed rulings, keeping clinic operations and care for hundreds of thousands of patients uncertain. "We will continue to fight this unconstitutional law, even though this court has allowed it to harm patients," Alexis McGill Johnson, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Federation of America, said in a statement.

“Patients who rely on the essential medical care provided by Planned Parenthood health centers cannot plan their futures, decide where to receive care, or control their lives, bodies, and futures—all because the Trump administration and its supporters want to attack Planned Parenthood and close the health centers.”