Today, the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments on a case that could restrict abortions and other types of emergency medical care all over the United States.
The case in question is called Idaho v. United States and it focuses on a law known as the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act. If the court rules in Idaho's favor, states could override this law's protections for disfavored populations, conditions and treatments including abortions that must be done to save a woman's life or prevent serious health consequences.
The George Washington University has experts available to talk about this law and the court case coming up. To schedule an interview with an expert please contact Kathy Fackelmann at [email protected] or GW Media at [email protected].
Lynn R. Goldman, Dean of the GW Milken Institute School of Public Health, is a pediatrician, epidemiologist and national public health expert. She is one of many deans and scholars nationwide that together filed a public health friend-of-the court brief on Idaho the United States. The brief argues that if Idaho is allowed to proceed states could bar hospitals from intervening In many types of emergency situations.
“The High Court’s decision could leave pregnant women who experience a health crisis without basic care to stabilize their emergency,” said Goldman. “Many serious problems can occur in a pregnancy that require immediate treatment. Without emergency medical care, including an abortion if needed, women are at risk for serious, lifelong health consequences.”
Sara Rosenbaum, professor emerita of health law and policy and founding chair of the Department of Health Policy at the GW Milken Institute School of Public Health, Is a nationally known health law expert who has written about the Supreme Court case and possible public health consequences In Health Affairs.
Watch Professor Rosenbaum discuss the case In this video.
Sonia Suter, The Henry St. George Tucker III Dean’s Research Professor of Law; The Kahan Family Research Professor of Law; Founding Director, Health Law Initiative at the George Washington University Law School. Professor Suter is an expert in the intersection of law, medicine and bioethics with a particular focus on reproductive rights, emerging reproductive technologies, and ethical and legal issues in genetics.
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