RELEASE: In Idaho v. United States, the Supreme Court Must Reckon With the Post-Dobbs Reality It Created

Washington, D.C. - In April 2024, the U.S. Supreme Court will review Idaho v. United States, a case that will determine whether medical providers can continue providing abortions to pregnant women experiencing dire medical conditions under the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA). A new column from the Center for American Progress provides an overview of how EMTALA requires physicians to provide an abortion for dire medical needs or pregnancy emergency, the timeline of events leading up tothe case and who will be affected by its outcome.

The outcome of Idaho v. United States will not just affect pregnant women in Idaho but every pregnant women, medical provider, and EMTALA-certified facility in the United States. EMTALA requires stabilizing treatment for any emergency medical condition, not just those treatments intended to prevent death or to terminate specific kinds of state-approved medical conditions. Therefore, a negative outcome could leave physicians with an untenable choice: withhold critical stabilizing treatment for patients as required under EMTALA or risk criminal prosecution and potential loss of their professional license by providing stabilizing treatment for pregnant women in dire medical need of an abortion.

"The lack of facilities, compounded by the exodus of OB-GYNs in Idaho on top of the skyrocketing mortality rate, highlights a simple truth: Idaho is an unsafe place for pregnant women," said Sabrina Talukder, director of the Women's Initiative at CAP. "This case highlights the mess the Supreme Court has made and how vulnerable pregnant women and the providers in charge of their care will continue to bear the consequences of its decision to eradicate legal precedent and the constitutional right to an abortion."

Read the column: "In Idaho v. United States, the Supreme Court Must Reckon With the Post-Dobbs Reality It Created" by Sabrina Talukder

For more information or to speak with an expert, please contact Sarah Nadeau [email protected].