The Quickie: Idaho Wants Supreme Court To Keep Abortion Ban In Place Despite Conflicts With Federal Law
For Immediate Release: Nov. 28, 2023
Welcome to “The Quickie” — Planned Parenthood Action Fund’s daily tipsheet on the top health care & reproductive rights stories of the day. You can read “The Quickie'' online here.
In today’s Quickie: Idaho asks Supreme Court to enforce abortion ban despite federal law conflicts, and the effects of maternity care deserts and abortion bans on women’s health
IDAHO WANTS SUPREME COURT TO KEEP ABORTION BAN IN PLACE DESPITE NOT FOLLOWING FEDERAL LAW PROTECTING EMERGENCY CARE: Idaho — represented by Alliance Defending Freedom, the same organization that is trying to end FDA approval of mifepristone — officially asked the U.S. Supreme Court to intervene to enforce an Idaho abortion ban despite a conflict with a federal law (EMTALA) that requires that doctors provide care in emergency situations, even while the case continues through the federal courts. As PPGNHAIK CEO Rebecca Gibron explained earlier in court proceedings, “Anti-abortion politicians have already banned abortion in the state of Idaho. And now it’s being taken a step further by taking away people’s ability to access emergency care when they need it the most. We’re dedicated to prioritizing our patients’ health and wellbeing - even if our state won’t. Because beyond the right to have an abortion, people deserve to have their doctors make decisions with their health and wellbeing in mind every time. That shouldn’t be a radical stance.”
Another case related to EMTALA is pending before the Fifth Circuit.
Read more in the Idaho Capital Sun here and CNN here.
THE COMPOUND EFFECT OF MATERNITY CARE DESERTS & ABORTION BANS ON PREGNANT WOMEN: More than one-third of U.S. counties are “maternity care deserts” – counties without obstetric providers or facilities offering obstetric care. In Texas, the statistics are even worse, with nearly half (46.5%) of counties being maternity care deserts.
If lack of access to quality maternity care isn’t enough, pregnant people are also faced with high maternal mortality and infant mortality rates, widespread abortion bans which further threaten the lives of pregnant people, and lack of access to postpartum care.
Dr. Bhavik Kumar, medical director of primary and trans care at Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast, told CBS, “It's not a coincidence that states that have highly restrictive abortion laws also tend to have the largest swath of maternity care deserts and also don't really invest in maternity care, whether it's preconception care, prenatal care or postpartum care.”
The problem of maternity care deserts is only worsening as some obstetric providers opt to leave states with abortion bans so that they can practice medicine to the highest standard by which they are trained, and fewer medical students pursue OB/GYN training in states with abortion bans. According to the Association of American Medical Colleges, 10.5% fewer senior OB/GYN applicants are pursuing jobs in states with total or near total abortion bans.
Read more at CBS News