A panel of federal appeals court judges ruled unanimously Tuesday that the Biden administration cannot force Texas emergency room doctors to perform abortions to stabilize a patient's condition.
The lawsuit stems from guidance issued by the Department of Health and Human Services in July 2022, which requires doctors in states where most abortions are illegal, such as Texas, to comply with the Emergency Medical Treatment and Affirmative Labor Act (EMTALA). Compliance was mandated.
A 1986 federal law requires ER physicians to perform abortions when necessary as part of stabilizing treatment for emergency medical conditions.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists, and the Christian Physicians and Dentistry Association objected to the Biden administration's guidance.
“The question before the court is whether, in accordance with HHS guidance, EMTALA requires physicians to perform abortions when the treatment is necessary to stabilize an emergency medical condition. It does not.” judgment It was handed down by the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. “Therefore, we decline to expand the scope of EMTALA.”
“EMTALA does not mandate medical procedures, let alone abortion care, nor does it preempt Texas law,” the three-judge panel, all appointed by Republican presidents, concluded.
The Fifth Circuit upheld a lower court's order blocking enforcement of the guidelines in Texas.
The Fifth Circuit's opinion “agrees with the district court that EMTALA does not give a pregnant mother an unconditional right to abort her child, especially if EMTALA imposes comparable stabilization obligations.” It has said.
The Biden administration released the guidance in response to the Supreme Court's June 2022 ruling that overturned Roe v. Wade, paving the way for states to ban abortion.
Texas abortion law states that once a fetal heartbeat is detected, unless it is necessary to save the mother's life or the pregnancy poses a “substantial risk of significant impairment of a major bodily function.” Abortion surgery is prohibited.
Doctors who perform abortions in Texas risk criminal penalties of up to life in prison and a $100,000 fine.
Last year, a federal judge in Idaho prevented states from enforcing abortion bansthe court ruled that it was inconsistent with EMTALA.
The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals subsequently stayed the lower court's decision pending the state of Idaho's appeal.
