Trump administration rescinds Biden-era mandate forcing doctors to commit abortions

The Trump administration officially rescinded Biden-era guidance that used federal law to coerce ER doctors to commit abortions under the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA). The move affirms the plain words of the statute: EMTALA protects both the “pregnant woman” and the “unborn child.”

“Doctors — especially in emergency rooms — are tasked with preserving life. The Trump administration has rolled back a harmful Biden-era mandate that compelled doctors to end unborn lives, in violation of their deeply held beliefs,” explained Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) senior counsel Matt Bowman, director of regulatory practice.

ADF had been representing a group of Catholic physicians and health care providers who had challenged the mandate.

“Emergency room physicians can and do treat life-threatening conditions such as ectopic pregnancies, and every state allows doctors to do whatever is necessary to preserve the life of a mother,” Bowman said. “Now, doctors will be able to perform their life-giving duties without fear of government officials forcing them to end life and violate their beliefs.”

EMTALA was intended to ensure hospitals do not force low-income or uninsured patients onto other facilities when they are in need of “stabilizing” medical care, according to the law. It also ensures women in labor can have a baby at any hospital, regardless of her financial situation.

However, the Biden administration sought to reinterpret EMTALA to include a right to abortions in the wake of the June 2022 reversal of Roe v. Wade. The administration has regularly created new rules and programs by executive fiat in the wake of the Supreme Court decision, including a Pentagon abortion travel memo and ignoring clear federal law that prohibits the mailing of abortion drugs.