Rep. Eshoo Statement on Supreme Court Ruling on Women’s Access to Life-Saving Abortion Care

Washington, D.C. - Health Subcommittee Ranking Member Anna G. Eshoo (CA-16) made the following statement regarding the U.S. Supreme Court's decision to dismiss the consolidated cases of Moyle v. United States and Idaho v. United States, preventing Idaho from enforcing a ban on abortions when necessary to prevent harm to women's health.

"Today, the Supreme Court dismissed Moyle v. United States and Idaho v. United States on the grounds that the Court should never have reviewed the case. The ruling temporarily keeps intact theEmergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act(EMTALA) which has been the law of the land for decades. Abortion care is health care and EMTALA correctly acknowledges that fact by requiring hospitals to provide emergency medical care and all stabilizing treatments to anyone who needs it, including emergency abortion services.

"After Idaho enacted its restrictive ban, the state's largest emergency care provider had to airlift pregnant patients out of state every other week, versus once in the preceding year. We've witnessed first-hand the disastrous consequences that play out when legislators are guided by ideological efforts to chip away at women's rights at all costs instead of protecting and sustaining the health of their constituents.

"Now that the case has been sent back to a lower court for further consideration, once again decisions on life-saving healthcare are in the hands of extremist right-wing legislators and the courts. The Supreme Court's decision is based on legal procedure, not the grave policy implications of Idaho's extreme law. Today, women in Idaho received a temporary reprieve and the next battle to protect women's access to reproductive health services continues in earnest tomorrow."

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