For Immediate Release:
June 26, 2024
For More Information:
Laura K Chapin
Media Communications Director, Cobalt
(303) 954-8416
Laura@cobaltadvocates.org
COBALT STATEMENT ON THE SUPREME COURT’S DECISION ALLOWING STATES TO DENY PATIENTS ABORTION CARE UNDER THE FEDERAL EMERGENCY MEDICAL TREATMENT AND LABOR ACT (EMTALA)
Denver – Cobalt today issued the following statement regarding the Supreme Court’s decision on Moyle v. United States/Idaho v United States, the case deciding whether states banning abortion can override federal law and deny pregnant patients emergency abortion care. The conservative majority on the Court upheld Idaho’s abortion ban, even for pregnant patients in the ER.
According to Colorado physician Dr Leilah Zahedi-Spung, “By ruling that abortion care is not protected under EMTALA, the court just allowed pregnant people seeking emergency care to be turned away in an emergency. I shudder to think what the ramifications of their actions are going to be on the state of maternal mortality in this country.”
And according to Cobalt President Karen Middleton:
“The Court’s decision today is a disaster. It’s a disaster for health care, for physicians, and for pregnant people in Idaho who now literally risk their lives showing up in an emergency room with pregnancy complications.
Never mind the standard of care, there is a standard of decency here that should determine that pregnant people who need an abortion as a stabilizing treatment in the ER should be given one, regardless of what state they live in. Women are being airlifted out of Idaho for lifesaving health care in other states. That should not be allowed to continue.
Colorado is a state that protects abortion rights in statute, but clearly, that’s not enough. With Roe overturned, every person in every state who seeks abortion care is at risk. The Court’s decision today is yet another example of why politicians need to stay out of decisions about abortion, and why we need to guarantee abortion access in the Colorado Constitution this fall.”
To address this critical need, Senadora Julie Gonzales and Representatives Meg Froelich, Lorena Garcia, and Senator-Elect Representative Mike Weissman have prepared a bill for the 2025 legislative session titled “Concerning Emergency Medical Protections for Coloradans’ Access to healthcare.”
Editors’ Note: You can read more about the EMTALA case here from the Center for Reproductive Rights and the National Women’s Law Center.
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Cobalt is a grassroots, statewide Colorado organization that advances abortion access and reproductive rights. Our organization began in 1967 when Colorado became the first state to allow safe, legal abortion. Cobalt believes nothing should stand between you and your health decisions, which is why we are dedicated to fighting for systems, structures and policies that protect reproductive rights and guarantee comprehensive, universal access to reproductive healthcare, including abortion.