AUGUSTA (AP) — Maine Gov. Paul LePage said he expects that the state’s fight with the federal government over whether it can remove thousands of low-income young adults from the state’s welfare rolls will end up in the U.S. Supreme Court.

The Republican governor told the Maine Public Broadcasting Network on Tuesday that he hopes the Supreme Court will hear the case. He says the state is now “just going through the process.”

The 1st Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Monday that the federal government was correct in rejecting LePage’s plan to eliminate Medicaid coverage for 6,000 19-and-20-year-olds.

LePage’s administration says that the program’s funds should be prioritized to help the elderly and disabled. Advocates for the poor who oppose the cuts say they will harm young people who need access to coverage.