The State Attorney General responded to a new lawsuit brought against him this week. St. Luke's Health System is suing Raúl Labrador over Idaho’s strict abortion ban, fearing the incoming Trump administration might dismiss a similar case currently making its way through the courts.
The state’s largest medical provider is asking for a preliminary injunction preventing the law from applying to emergency providers.
The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court Tuesday says the state’s abortion ban conflicts with the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act, or EMTALA, which requires hospitals that receive federal funding to provide stabilizing care.
“That includes sometimes in rare cases, women who are pregnant and have complications,” St. Luke’s Attorney Peg Dougherty. In some circumstances, the only stabilizing care available to protect these patients’ health is to terminate their pregnancy.
But under Idaho’s law, abortions are only allowed in narrow circumstances; when the pregnancy is the result of rape, incest or when the life of the mother is threatened.
“So our physicians are in a position where they can't comply with both laws,” Dougherty added.
An injunction currently blocks the ban from applying to emergency situations. It was granted in a lawsuit brought by the Federal Government against the State of Idaho. Dougherty said St. Lukes’ fears the incoming Trump administration will dismiss the case and vacate the injunction.
“The U.S. Supreme Court has already ruled that the Constitution does not contain a right to abortion and that laws protecting the sanctity of life are left up to the individual states,” Labrador wrote in an email. “There is no conflict between the plain interpretation of Idaho’s Defense of Life Act and EMTALA. Idaho law protects both the life of the mother and their unborn child. Any perceived conflict has been perpetuated by politicians, organizations, and individuals seeking to confuse doctors and jeopardize patient health for political ends.”
“I don't think doctors are confused at all,” Dougherty said, adding providers should be able to intervene when their patients' health is in jeopardy. “That is really what the public expects of our emergency room physicians.”
St Luke's has filed a motion to expedite the process.