U.S. hospitals no longer required to perform emergency abortions
Global News
The guidance was issued to hospitals in 2022 by the Biden administration, weeks after the U.S. Supreme Court upended national abortion rights in the U.S.
The Trump administration announced on Tuesday that it would revoke guidance to the nation’s hospitals that directed them to provide emergency abortions for women when they are necessary to stabilize their medical condition.
That guidance was issued to hospitals in 2022, weeks after the U.S. Supreme Court upended national abortion rights in the U.S. It was an effort by the Biden administration to preserve abortion access for extreme cases in which women were experiencing medical emergencies and needed an abortion to prevent organ loss or severe hemorrhaging, among other serious complications.
The Biden administration had argued that hospitals — including ones in states with near-total bans — needed to provide emergency abortions under the Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act. That law requires emergency rooms that receive Medicare dollars to provide an exam and stabilizing treatment for all patients. Nearly all emergency rooms in the U.S. rely on Medicare funds.
The Trump administration announced on Tuesday that it would no longer enforce that policy.
The move prompted concerns from some doctors and abortion rights advocates that women will not get emergency abortions in states with strict bans.
“The Trump Administration would rather women die in emergency rooms than receive life-saving abortions,” Nancy Northup, president and CEO of the Center for Reproductive Rights, said in a statement. “In pulling back guidance, this administration is feeding the fear and confusion that already exists at hospitals in every state where abortion is banned. Hospitals need more guidance, not less, to stop them from turning away patients experiencing pregnancy crises.”
Anti-abortion advocates, meanwhile, praised the announcement. Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of SBA Pro-Life America, said in a statement that the Biden-era policy had been a way to expand abortion access in states where it was banned.
“Democrats have created confusion on this fact to justify their extremely unpopular agenda for all-trimester abortion,” she said. “In situations where every minute counts, their lies lead to delayed care and put women in needless, unacceptable danger.”
U.S. President Donald Trump is expected to sign an executive order that would reclassify marijuana and ease federal restrictions on research for potential new medical products.
The report was released by the Manitoba Government and General Employees' Union and is based on feedback from crews and other staff involved in the wildfire fight.
Opponents of coal mining in the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains have some sharp criticism for Alberta's UCP government after being told to resubmit their citizens petition.
Three children in Ontario have died from influenza A-related complications since the start of December, health officials said Monday.
The company that operates the Trans Mountain pipeline has paid a $196,000 fine for environmental lapses along its B.C. pipeline route in the aftermath of a massive Jan. 2024 storm.
Alberta's provincial government has announced the creation of three new all-season resort areas that it claims could generate thousands of jobs and billions in economic benefits.
Corb Lund says he's seeking the intervention as new coal mines could threaten land and water on the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains and affect the Prairies downstream.
Officers had recently captured four grizzly bears, but forensic results came back to confirm that none of the bears, an adult female and three young, were linked to the attack.
The research recommends occipital nerve blocks should be offered in emergency rooms to treat acute migraine attacks.
A federal vaccine advisory committee voted on Friday to end the longstanding recommendation that all U.S. babies get the hepatitis B vaccine on the day they’re born.
Darlene Hensch, who once struggled with unexplained infertility, is now expecting quadruplets and preparing for a high-risk delivery and life-changing journey.
Negotiations that could have led to coverage for weight-loss drug Wegovy under Canadian public health plans are not moving forward.
They've been married for 55 years, but for most of that time, something has been missing from Janet and Robert Cockwill's life, until their grandson made a remarkable discovery.