Media

For Immediate Release
June 27, 2024
Noah Brandt
VP, Communications
media@liveaction.org

Supreme Court Ruling on Emergency Care Endangers Pregnant Mothers and Preborn Children

Washington, D.C. – Today, the Supreme Court released its opinion in Idaho v. United States.  

Lila Rose, founder and president of Live Action, released the following comment:

When a physician takes the Hippocratic oath of “first, do no harm,” they are making a commitment towards an ethic of healing and are disavowing intentional injury. Abortion – killing a child in her mother’s womb – is the worst betrayal of that oath. The intentional destruction of an innocent human life is a crime against humanity and is never an act of medicine. Today, the Supreme Court neglected that reality by sending Idaho v. United States back to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. Now, emergency rooms may be forced to commit abortions, which stands in stark contrast to physicians’  foundational principles of protecting both pregnant mothers and their preborn children.

The Emergency Medical Treatment & Labor Act, known as EMTALA, is a federal law that prohibits emergency rooms from turning away patients who cannot pay for care. When a patient is pregnant, emergency rooms are required to care for both the pregnant mother and her “unborn child.” Nothing about EMTALA requires emergency rooms to provide abortions in violation of state law. This act was designed to ensure that human life is protected and explicitly includes treatment for preborn children. EMTALA even provides explicit protections for ‘unborn children’ in four separate places within the statute. The Biden Administration is once again promoting its abortion-at-all-costs agenda, this time by co-opting a federal law meant to protect life. EMTALA has nothing to do with abortion. But this administration will stop at nothing to advance abortion, even at the expense of legal and ethical standards designed to protect the most vulnerable among us.

As Justice Alito writes in his dissent, “Far from requiring hospitals to perform abortions, EMTALA’s text unambiguously demands that Medicare-funded hospitals protect the health of both a pregnant woman and her ‘unborn child.’”

In states like Idaho, doctors are already empowered to provide necessary stabilizing care for mothers facing life-threatening situations. These medical professionals can exercise their reasonable judgment to perform interventions that, while tragic, may lead to the unintended death of the preborn child. This is fundamentally different from abortion—the direct and intentional killing of an innocent human being in the womb. Federal law does not mandate emergency room doctors to commit abortions. In cases where premature delivery is required to save the mother’s life, this is not considered an abortion. It is a necessary medical intervention where the primary intent is to save lives, not end them.

As Justice Barrett wrote in concurrence, Idaho’s Defense of Life Act “remains almost entirely intact.” Thankfully, the Biden Administration was also forced to concede that federal law never requires abortions for reasons of “mental health.” 

Abortion is the intentional destruction of an innocent human life. Every abortion kills a child and violates our laws and the principles of justice we all naturally understand. The innocent should be protected, not targeted. Children should be cherished, not butchered. The law should shield the weak, not create the means to murder them. 

The Supreme Court reached the wrong decision today by failing to rule that abortion is not medical care. The pro-life movement, the people of Idaho, and Americans across the nation will continue to fight in politics, culture, and the courtroom until all people, including preborn children, are given their constitutional right to equal protection. Together, we will make abortion illegal and unthinkable. 

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About Lila Rose & Live Action – Lila Rose founded and serves as president of Live Action. Live Action is a 501(c)3 human rights non-profit and the digital leader of the global pro-life movement. Live Action exists today to shift public opinion on abortion and defend the rights of the most vulnerable. With 7 million combined social media followers and over 2.2 billion lifetime video views, Live Action reaches individuals 70 million times per month– saving lives and transforming hearts, with 40% of surveyed followers saying Live Action’s content has changed their position against abortion. Through compelling educational media, human interest storytelling, investigative reporting, and community activism, Live Action reveals the humanity of preborn children and exposes the abortion industry’s exploitation of women and families for profit. Find out more at http://www.liveaction.org.