Hospitals could be denying pregnant people life-saving Emergency Room (ER) abortion care in the foreseeable future. Unless the U.S. Supreme Court takes action against this ruling, banning abortion will endanger the lives of pregnant women.
Federal law requires hospitals to provide emergency care to patients in medical crises, including abortion care. The law, called Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act (EMTALA), has been in place for nearly 40 years.
Some states only allow abortions in “life-saving” situations, not when a patient faces serious threats to their health. For example, if a pregnant person is at risk of losing their uterus in an ectopic pregnancy, where a fetus grows outside of the uterus, doctors would be prevented from providing emergency abortion care under the extreme abortion bans.
When a state law and federal law conflict, federal law is supposed to take priority. But in 2022, Texas sued the federal Department of Health, claiming that EMTALA excluded abortion care. They way this is often phased is life of child vs. mother. An appellate court ruled in favor of the state, meaning Texas emergency rooms now turn away pregnant patients in medical crises who need an abortion to safe their own lives.
Also in 2022, the Justice Department sued Idaho, claiming that its restrictive abortion ban violates EMTALA. The court agreed with the Justice Department and ordered the state to offer emergency abortion care in its hospitals. Then the Supreme Court temporarily blocked the lower court order, allowing Idaho to continue enforcing its restrictive abortion ban in emergency rooms while the case proceeded.
On April 24, the Supreme Court heard the abortion case and soon the Court will further decide whether pregnant people are entitled to receive emergency abortion care. The chances of a pregnant person having a complication with pregnancy, affecting the mother or child is 8%. If the court rules that states are not required to allow hospital Emergency Rooms to provide emergency abortion care, there would be life-threatening consequences for those who may be pregnant.
Recently, in Florida, a woman in need of emergency care who was turned away, lost half of her blood before she could return to the ER for care. In Oklahoma, a severely ill pregnant woman had to wait in her car until her condition got worse before she could receive abortion care. A pregnant person might even die while awaiting care, so upholding the EMTALA is necessary and lifesaving.
The current abortion bans and possible emergency care restrictions make it stressful for someone who cannot emotionally or financially withstand a pregnancy, like myself. These bans will directly affect where I choose to go to college and spend the rest of my life.
