Following the earth-shattering overturning of the landmark 1973 Roe V. Wade Supreme Court ruling in 2022, multiple Republican-led states across the country instantly pulled the trigger on some of the most restrictive and heinous anti-abortion laws the United States of America has ever seen. But perhaps the most draconian of them all was the state of Idaho, which implemented downright terrifying laws to criminally punish not only individuals who seek abortions, but the medical professionals who provide them, as well — and the United States Supreme Court just made damn sure they could get away with it.
The state of Idaho was quick to implement a near-total ban on abortion in their state, complete with a ruthless law that serves to jail any doctor who performs an abortion outside of their extraordinarily strict and narrow exceptions for up to 5 years.
That law has been challenged by the Biden Department of Justice, which asserts that the near-total ban directly contradicts federal law that requires emergency room doctors at Medicare-funded hospitals to provide stabilizing treatments, including abortions under certain circumstances.
“Beyond care necessary to prevent death, the law provides no defense whatsoever when the health of the pregnant patient is at stake,” the Biden DOJ wrote in their challenge to the law. “And, even in dire situations that might qualify for the Idaho law’s limited ‘necessary to prevent the death of the pregnant woman’ affirmative defense, some providers could withhold care based on a well-founded fear of criminal prosecution.”
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While SCOTUS has agreed to hear the DOJ’s argument, their ruling asserted that the horrifying law would remain in place in Idaho until that hearing takes place — in April — meaning that any Idaho doctor who performs an abortion that has not been deemed “necessary to prevent the death of the pregnant woman” or the pregnancy was a result of incest or rape will be subject to a 5-year sentence.
The response to such a draconian law and ruling has sparked backlash nationwide.
Democratic Washington state Senator Patty Murray responded to the horrifying ruling on X (formerly Twitter,) writing, “SCOTUS just allowed Idaho to throw health care providers in jail for providing emergency abortion care while they consider this case. This is a chilling reminder that the anti-abortion movement doesn’t care if women live or die — as long as they’re forced to give birth.”
President Biden even released a public statement in response to the ruling, stating that the SCOTUS decision to overturn Roe V. Wade has allowed far-right Republican officials in states like Idaho and Texas to pass cruel and oppressive laws that “jeopardize women’s health, force them to travel out of state for care, and make it harder for doctors to provide care, including in an emergency.”
“These bans are also forcing doctors to leave Idaho and other states because of laws that interfere with their ability to care for their patients. This should never happen in America,” the President said in his statement.
Featured image via Flickr/Julia Tulke, under Creative Commons license 2.0
