Department of Justice Sues Idaho Over Abortion Law

The Department of Justice (DOJ) on Tuesday filed a lawsuit against Idaho over a law that imposes a ban on the vast majority of abortions, coming weeks after the Supreme Court’s landmark decision to overturn Roe v. Wade while marking what could the first in several Biden administration efforts to target states over their respective abortion laws.

An Idaho law slated to take effect Aug. 25 was triggered by the Supreme Court’s decision in late June and would make it a felony for health care providers to carry out abortions except to save the life of the mother or in instances involving incest or rape that are reported to law enforcement.

The law, which was passed two years ago, would also make providing abortions a felony with a punishment of up to five years in prison.

In an announcement Tuesday, Attorney General Merrick Garland claimed the law runs afoul of the federal Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act, or EMTALA, that allows providers to give medically stabilizing treatment during an emergency. Under the law, Garland argued, such care includes performing an abortion.

“If a patient comes into the emergency room with a medical emergency jeopardizing the patient’s life or health, hospitals must provide the treatment necessary to stabilize that patient,” Garland said. “This includes abortion, and that is the necessary treatment.”

First of Many

It’s the first DOJ lawsuit to target a state over an abortion ban adopted following the Supreme Court’s ruling. A majority of justices said that the Constitution doesn’t say a woman has a right to obtain an abortion while adding that it should be up to the states to decide on whether the procedure—which some religious groups and conservatives say is murder—should be allowed or not.

Members of the Supreme Court pose for a group photo at the Supreme

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