The Supreme Court is set to consider a case from Idaho regarding when doctors can provide abortions during medical emergencies in states with bans enacted after Roe v. Wade was overturned. Idaho is one of 14 states that now ban abortion at all stages of pregnancy with limited exceptions. This marks the first time the Supreme Court has taken up a case involving a state ban since Roe was reversed. The Biden administration argues that federal health care law mandates hospitals to be allowed to terminate pregnancies in rare emergencies where a patient’s life or health is at serious risk, even in states where abortion is banned.
Despite the Idaho law being allowed to go into effect by the Supreme Court, doctors have claimed that it has already impacted emergency care. Women in need of abortions for conditions typically treated in this way must now be flown out of state for care, as doctors are required to wait until they are near death to provide abortions within the boundaries of the state law. Additionally, complaints of pregnant women being turned away from emergency rooms in the U.S. have increased following the overturning of Roe v. Wade, according to federal documents obtained by The Associated Press.
Anti-abortion groups have blamed doctors for mishandling maternal emergency cases, while Idaho argues that the Biden administration is exaggerating health care issues to undermine state abortion laws. Another abortion case that seeks to restrict access to abortion medication was also heard by the justices this term and remains pending. However, the justices seemed skeptical of this push as a whole. The Supreme Court, during this term, is expected to make a ruling on the Idaho case and the case concerning abortion medication by the end of June.
The Justice Department brought the case against Idaho, alleging that the state’s abortion law conflicts with the 1986 Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act (EMTALA), which requires hospitals accepting Medicare to provide emergency care to any patient regardless of their ability to pay. Nearly all hospitals in the country accept Medicare. Initially, a federal judge ruled in favor of the administration, stating that abortions were legal in medical emergencies. However, after the state appealed, the Supreme Court allowed the law to come into full effect in January. The final decision on the case is expected to be made by the end of June.
