Catholic doctors challenge Biden admin abortion mandate

ADF attorneys file suit on behalf of medical association, doctor after HHS attempts to override state pro-life laws

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys filed a federal lawsuit Friday against the Biden administration for trying to force emergency room doctors to perform abortions under the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act. In the case, ADF attorneys represent the Catholic Medical Association, a national network of about 2,500 physicians and health care providers, arguing that the mandate violates members’ conscience rights and oversteps executive authority.

After the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and gave health care decision-making power back to the states in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, the Biden administration announced its intention to force doctors to perform abortions under EMTALA. Shortly after the announcement, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services issued a memorandum stating that EMTALA grants the administration authority to override state pro-life laws, even though EMTALA does not mention abortion. The Supreme Court declined to review a decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit in a similar lawsuit that protects doctors in Texas and for other organizations, and CMA is asking the court for similar protection.

“Doctors—especially in emergency rooms—are tasked with preserving life,” said ADF Senior Counsel Matt Bowman, director of regulatory practice. “Federal bureaucrats have no business compelling doctors or hospitals to end unborn lives, especially when the law they are citing grants them no such authority. 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.

“Elective abortion is not life-saving care—it ends the life of the unborn child—and EMTALA does not grant the government authority to force doctors to perform these dangerous procedures; rather, it requires doctors to treat a pregnant woman and her ‘unborn child,’” Bowman continued. “We urge the court to follow Supreme Court precedent and allow doctors to perform their life-giving duties without fear of government officials forcing them to violate their beliefs.”

ADF attorneys filed Catholic Medical Association v. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee, Nashville Division. In a similar case, ADF attorneys are serving as co-counsel with Idaho Attorney General Raúl Labrador in upholding Idaho’s Defense of Life Act against the Biden administration’s claim that federal funding under EMTALA allows the federal government to supersede state laws that protect life.

Alliance Defending Freedom is an alliance-building, non-profit legal organization committed to protecting religious freedom, free speech, parental rights, and the sanctity of life.

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