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Cobalt Advocates

Date: 14/04/2025

  • Press Releases & Statements

1:00 PM, Monday, April 14: Media Briefing with Senate President Coleman, Bill Sponsors, and Advocates on SB 130, Guaranteeing Abortion Care in Colorado Emergency Rooms

For Immediate Release:
April 14, 2025

For More Information:
Laura K Chapin
Media Communications Director, Cobalt
(303) 954-8416
Laura@cobaltadvocates.org

Colorado Legislation Needed Because State Law is Silent, Trump Administration Will No Longer Enforce Federal Law

Denver – In advance of Monday’s Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on  SB25-130, Providing Emergency Medical Services, Senate President James Coleman (D-Denver), bill sponsors Senator Mike Weissman (D-Aurora) and Senadora Julie Gonzales (D-Denver), along with advocates from Cobalt, COLOR (Colorado Organization for Latina Opportunity and Reproductive Rights), and the Interfaith Alliance of Colorado will be holding a media briefing to discuss the legislation.

SB25-130 is critically needed now to ensure patient centered care since the Trump Administration has announced it will no longer enforce the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA) for patients needing abortion care in the ER. There is currently no statute in Colorado law guaranteeing care.

When and Where:

Monday, April 14
1:00 pm, Capitol Press Room 351
Colorado State Capitol

Who:

State Senate President James Coleman
Senator Mike Weissman
Senadora Julie Gonzales
Karen Middleton, President of Cobalt
Dusti Gurule, President and CEO of COLOR
Shara Smith, CEO Interfaith Alliance of Colorado

The Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA) is a federal law that requires hospitals to provide emergency care to anyone who needs it, regardless of their insurance status or ability to pay. This may include abortion care when medically indicated.

States with abortion bans – most notably Idaho and Texas – have challenged the law, and argued in court that their state abortion bans override EMTALA. The Supreme Court effectively left EMTALA in legal limbo in Moyle v. United States, and the Trump Administration has announced it is no longer pursuing the case against Idaho for refusing to provide abortion care in the emergency room.

SB25-130 will put protections in place in Colorado for abortion and miscarriage care in the ER regardless of what happens federally. This bill would create state protections to:

  • Provide certainty for patients and emergency providers in the face of attacks from anti abortion states and a tumultuous federal environment
  • Require emergency care be provided to all patients in Colorado
  • Prohibit denial or discrimination of emergency care based on a patient’s ability to pay, type of care needed, or other characteristics protected under Colorado law
  • Prohibit emergency departments from transferring or discharging a patient for non-medical reasons
  • Ensure stabilizing care is provided, including to preserve future fertility and health
  • Strengthen compliance by authorizing the attorney general to seek injunctive relief or a civil penalty against an emergency department

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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.