The (Not-so) Supremes will be talking about the Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act (EMTALA) this week, so let’s have a go ourselves, shall we?
The title of the piece is mine, the rest is Argiope.
Not-So-Supreme Court Argument – Spitting Rage
by Argiope:
EMTALA passed in 1986 to prevent hospitals from turning away people who couldn’t pay during things like heart attacks or giving birth. It also requires hospitals to stabilize people with pregnancy emergencies, like ectopics and inevitable miscarriages with a high risk of sepsis, both of which are best treated by ending the pregnancy.
Along came post-Dobbs Idaho, where an extreme abortion ban was ready to go into effect the minute Roe fell.
Common-clay-of-the-new-West Idaho authoritahs decided not to honor EMTALA, and to direct their state’s physicians NOT to perform abortions that could save the health of the mother when doing so would go against Idaho’s bans.
The Biden administration then sued Idaho for non-compliance with EMTALA.
Meanwhile, Texas said, “Hold my beer, Idaho,” and sued the Biden administration back. They wanted to tie their own doctors’ hands similarly to Idaho, and conveniently forgot that Article VI, Paragraph 2 of the Constitution means that federal law overrides state law when these are in conflict.
That all leads us to April 24, when SCOTUS will hear the federal case against the state of Idaho and Solicitor General Preloger will try to legally prevent Idaho’s women from suffering unnecessarily.
Justices Alito and Thomas, who are not doctors but stayed in a Holiday Inn last night, will:
- Holler “State’s Rights” very loudly and insist that Idaho has a perfect right to cause infertility, hysterectomy, sepsis, and near death for its pregnant citizens.
- They’ll say Idaho has a right to prevent its physicians from doing what their Hippocratic oaths, medical judgment and common sense say they should.
Justice Fundy Baby Voice will of course:
- Acknowledge that ladies do have parts and be very concerned
- yet resolute in her conviction that fetal people have even MORE parts that count than grown-ass women do.
This is your regular reminder that safe, effective abortion pills are available by mail in all 50 states, and Idaho and Texas need them.
These pills are not gonna solve the issues EMTALA is meant to address, but they speak to why the Comstock Act, passed in 1873, needs to stay unenforced. Better yet, Dems should overturn the Comstock Act as soon as we have a trifecta again in January.
I am so sick of this Supreme Court. How did it even get this far?
Federal Law > State Law. End of story.
Update at 2:20 pm: I pulled this earlier as soon as I realized it was Day 1 of the NY Election Interference trial. Posting again now. First comment after repost is #14.
Not-So-Supreme Court Argument – Spitting RagePost + Comments (59)