Thank President Donald Trump for Another Pro-Life Policy
Two reminders. One, elections have consequences—good and bad. Two, it makes a difference when statutes are read as they are written, not as pro-abortionists want them to be interpreted.
To cut to the chase, as Nancy Flanders reminds us, “The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) rescinded Biden-era guidance Tuesday that attempted to force emergency room (ER) workers to carry out induced abortions.”
This misuse of the Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act (EMTALA) was one major pro-abortion response to the Dobbs decision which overturned Roe, and largely, but not exclusively, returned the abortion issue to the states. EMTALA was originally created to safeguard access to emergency care, especially for people with low incomes. The Biden administration hijacked the law in its whole-of-government pursuit of multiplying the number of dead babies by forcing hospitals nationwide to perform abortions.
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They said that EMTALA preempted state pro-life laws that protected unborn children. Their “guidance” asserted that EMTALA legally obligates emergency room doctors to commit abortions, potentially turning all hospitals into quasi-abortion clinics.
Yesterday, the Trump administration rescinded those provisions. Under the title “CMS Statement on Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA),” it reads
The Department of Health and Human Services and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (“CMS”) are rescinding July 2022 guidance from CMS with the subject “Reinforcement of EMTALA Obligations specific to Patients who are Pregnant or are Experiencing Pregnancy Loss” and the accompanying Letter from the former Secretary of Health and Human Services, which do not reflect the policy of this Administration. CMS will continue to enforce EMTALA, which protects all individuals who present to a hospital emergency department seeking examination or treatment, including for identified emergency medical conditions that place the health of a pregnant woman or her unborn child in serious jeopardy. CMS will work to rectify any perceived legal confusion and instability created by the former administration’s actions.
Backdrop
Idaho, to its great credit, fought back against the Biden administration’s July 2022 memorandum and letter from then-Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra that threatened to remove Medicare funding. National Right to Life filed a friend of the court brief supporting Idaho’s pro-life law. It read in part
HHS’s attempt to discover an abortion mandate within EMTALA’s limited stabilization requirement for emergency medical conditions exceeds the bounds of regulatory authority granted by Congress. EMTALA contains no language expressly directing abortion services. Rather, HHS is reaching beyond EMTALA’s text and structure to insert its own policy preferences favoring abortion access. This overreach contravenes foundational limits on agency power.
HHS has issued guidance purporting to discover a federal abortion mandate in EMTALA’s requirement to provide stabilizing treatment. But this mandate exists only from HHS’s erroneous interpretation, not EMTALA’s text. The guidance represents a stark example of agency overreach— HHS conjuring new regulatory powers on a political whim.
Hat’s off to HHS and the CMS! Another pro-life victory!
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