Conservative justices question whether federal law requires hospitals to provide emergency abortions

Idaho's Defense of Life Act, which was passed in 2022, prohibits abortion except cases involving rape, incest or the need to "prevent the death of the pregnant woman."

By Nicholas Ballasy

Published: April 24, 2024 3:28pm

Conservative justices on the U.S. Supreme Court questioned whether federal law can require hospitals to provide emergency abortions after Roe v. Wade was overturned.

“How can you impose restrictions on what Idaho can criminalize?” Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. asked Solicitor General Elizabeth B. Prelogar during oral arguments surrounding Idaho's abortion ban.

The Biden administration has argued that emergency access to abortion should remain under the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA).

The liberal justices are the court sided with the administration during the oral arguments.

Idaho's Defense of Life Act, which took effect in 2022, prohibits abortion except cases involving rape, incest or the need to "prevent the death of the pregnant woman."