Court Expands Idaho Abortion Exception in Medical Emergency Case

An Idaho judge made a big decision on April 11 that made the state's abortion ban clearer. The judge said that doctors can legally perform abortions on pregnant patients who face a real risk of death, even if the death is not imminent or inevitable.

Speaking in Ada County state court, District Judge Jason Scott stressed that the law allows abortions if a doctor, using "good faith medical judgment," decides that the patient has "a non-negligible risk of dying sooner" if the treatment is not done. This ruling is partly good news for the four women and two doctors who sued the state in 2023 because they were turned down for abortions even though they were not pregnant.

The Center for Reproductive Rights helped file the case, which was against the small medical emergency exception to Idaho's strict abortion ban. Because their babies had defects that could have killed them, the women had to leave the state to get medical care.

Gail Deady, a lawyer for the plaintiffs, said, "This decision is a step forward, but it leaves many others behind, including some of the women who brought this case." She said the decision was wrong because it didn't make any exceptions for situations where the baby isn't viable or where there are mental health risks, like self-harm.

Judge Scott also said that if the life-threatening exception is used to have an abortion, doctors must use a way that, if possible, keeps the fetus alive outside the womb. He refused to make the exception apply to cases where a fatal baby diagnosis was made.

The office of the Idaho Attorney General has not commented on the decision. The state can try to change the ruling.

The decision comes after other lawsuits were filed against Idaho's abortion ban. These included a federal case from the Biden administration, which said the state's law goes against federal rules for emergency medical care.

As the legal fights go on, supporters say that more changes are needed to fully protect pregnant people who are having medical emergencies.