Supreme court dismisses case on Idaho’s abortion ban

By Naomi Cahn, University of Virginia and Sonia Suter, George Washington University The Supreme Court decision allows abortions under certain conditions to be carried out in Idaho, for now. AndreyPopov/iStock/Getty Images Plus On June 27, 2024, the U.S. Supreme Court dismissed a case brought by the federal government regarding whether Idaho’s abortion ban conflicts with a federal law called the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act. The law requires emergency rooms to provide stabilizing care for patients experiencing medical emergencies regardless of their ability to pay. The Conversation asked law professors Naomi Cahn and Sonia Suter to explain how the case ended up in the Supreme Court’s hands and why battles between this federal law and state abortion laws will likely be in the news for the foreseeable future. What is the key disagreement between Idaho and the federal government? In Moyle v. United States, the Supreme Court faced the question of whether the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act overrides Idaho’s strict abortion ban. Congress passed the law in 1986 to ensure patients’ access to emergency care even if they couldn’t afford to pay for it. It requires emergency rooms to stabilize patients if failing to do so would...