AAMC (Association of American Medical Colleges) President and CEO David J. Skorton, MD, issued the following statement following the U.S. Supreme Court decision on the Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act (EMTALA):
“The AAMC is pleased that the Supreme Court has reinstated the August 2022 district court preliminary injunction.
At issue is whether Idaho’s law that bans abortions (unless to save the life of a pregnant woman) violates the federal EMTALA law, which requires treatment to stabilize a patient with an emergency medical condition. The district court properly concluded that because of the conflict between the Idaho law and the federal EMTALA law, physicians were put in an impossible position and that, under the Constitution, EMTALA preempts state law.
Under the now-reinstated district court’s preliminary injunction, physicians in Idaho can again provide stabilizing care in an emergency setting, which could include abortion, without the threat of criminal prosecution and loss of license.
The AAMC remains concerned about restrictive state laws that limit access to comprehensive reproductive health care, interfere in the patient-physician relationship, and put pregnant women’s health and lives at risk. We will continue to monitor the proceedings in the case as it returns to the lower courts.”