Federal Emergency Law Overrides Idaho Abortion Ban, US Says

Idaho can’t enforce its total abortion ban in emergency situations because it criminalizes medical treatments that are required by federal law, the US said.

The US Constitution’s supremacy clause and the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act’s express preemption provision prohibit Idaho from banning care required to stabilize pregnancy-related emergencies that could result in permanent injuries to a pregnant person, the government said in a brief asking the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. It wants the court to uphold a preliminary injunction blocking the state from enforcing the ban pending trial.

EMTALA requires Medicare-participating hospitals to screen ...