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WASHINGTON (AP) – The Trump administration announced on Tuesday its decision to withdraw guidance issued to hospitals instructing them to provide emergency abortion when necessary to stabilize a woman’s condition.
This guidance, issued to hospitals in 2022 shortly after the US Supreme Court modified national abortion rights, aimed to ensure abortion access in critical situations where women faced medical emergencies requiring an abortion to prevent organ damage or severe hemorrhaging.
The Biden administration maintained that hospitals were obligated to offer emergency abortions as part of emergency medical care, citing existing labor laws that require emergency rooms, which receive Medicare funding, to provide necessary interventions and stabilization treatments. Nearly all emergency rooms in the US depend on Medicare funding.
However, the Trump administration stated on Tuesday that it would cease enforcement of that policy.
This decision has raised concerns among some medical professionals and advocates for abortion rights, highlighting that women in states with strict bans may be denied emergency abortions.
“Women may find themselves in life-threatening situations due to the Trump administration’s actions, essentially forcing them to face avoidable risks in emergency rooms,” stated Nancy Northup, president and CEO of the Center for Reproductive Rights. “By retracting this guidance, this administration is perpetuating the fear and confusion that already plague hospitals in states where abortion is restricted. More guidance is needed to assist hospitals in caring for patients experiencing pregnancy-related crises.”
Conversely, anti-abortion advocates welcomed the announcement. Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of SBA Pro-Life America, articulated in a statement that the policies during the Biden era were an effort to expand abortion access in states where it is prohibited.
“Democrats are distorting the truth and promoting their unpopular agenda for unrestricted abortion,” she remarked. “In time-sensitive situations, their misinformation can lead to delays in care, putting women at unnecessary and unacceptable risk.”
An Associated Press investigation conducted last year revealed that numerous pregnant women, including those in need of emergency abortions, faced barriers in accessing care even with the Biden administration’s guidance.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), which oversees hospital regulations, issued a statement affirming its commitment to enforcing federal laws regarding identified emergency medical conditions that pose significant risks to the health of pregnant women or fetuses.
However, the CMS also noted that it aims to “correct the legal disruption and uncertainty caused by previous administrations.”
Initially, the Biden administration filed a lawsuit against Idaho over an abortion law that restricted abortions even if necessary to save a mother’s life. The federal government indicated that Idaho’s law conflicted with federal regulations before the U.S. Supreme Court, emphasizing that necessary treatments should stabilize patients.
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled last year on procedural matters, leaving unresolved critical questions about whether women can terminate their pregnancies in situations where they face serious risks of infection, organ loss, or severe bleeding.
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Source: apnews.com