The Facts
- The 5th US Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday rejected the Biden administration’s appeal of a district court ruling that prevented enforcement of the administration’s emergency care law guidance that said hospitals “must” provide abortion services if the mother’s life is at risk.
- Texas, which has banned most forms of abortion since the US Supreme Court ended the federal right to abortions in 2022, joined with abortion opponents in suing to stop the guidance, which the administration took from the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA) of 1986.
- Under the EMTALA, hospitals must provide treatment to stabilize a patient with an emergency medical condition. The guidance specified this would include abortions at hospitals that receive Medicare.
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The Spin
Republican narrative
When SCOTUS overturned Roe it returned the power to regulate abortions to the states. Federal guidance doesn’t supersede state law in this or any other matter. Texas’ abortion law contains exceptions to protect the life of the mother, but the federal government doesn’t have the right to mandate hospitals to perform specific medical procedures.
Democratic narrative
America should be outraged at how this ruling disregards the safety of women in life-threatening situations related to their pregnancy. This ruling essentially prevents hospitals from acting swiftly during an emergency lest they perform an abortion that doesn’t meet the state’s vague standards necessary for an exception to its abortion ban. This is shameful.
Metaculus Prediction
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