Judge blocks part of Idaho’s new abortion law in first post-Roe lawsuit by the Biden administration
A federal judge on Wednesday temporarily blocked part of Idaho’s strict abortion law that's scheduled to take effect Thursday.
A federal judge on Wednesday temporarily blocked part of Idaho’s strict abortion law that's scheduled to take effect Thursday, handing the Biden administration a narrow courtroom win in its first lawsuit to protect reproductive rights since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.
The ruling from U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill prevents Idaho from enforcing the new law when it conflicts with federal guidance about emergency abortion care in hospitals.
“The State of Idaho will not suffer any real harm if the Court issues the modest preliminary injunction the United States is requesting,” Winmill wrote.
Attorney General Merrick Garland announced the lawsuit against Idaho this month, arguing that the state’s law conflicted with a federal statute known as the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act, or EMTALA, which was enacted in 1986 to ensure patients receive adequate emergency medical care.
Garland announces Justice Department lawsuit challenging Idaho abortion lawAug. 2, 202203:40That law requires doctors to provide the emergency medical treatment necessary to stabilize anyone who comes into an emergency room. “This includes abortion, when that is the necessary treatment,” Garland said at the time.
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