A federal judge on Wednesday temporarily blocked part of Idaho’s strict abortion law that's scheduled to take effect Thursday, handing the Biden administration a narrow courtroom win in its first lawsuit to protect reproductive rights since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.
The ruling from Judge B. Lynn Winmill prevents Idaho from enforcing the new law when it conflicts with federal guidance on emergency abortion care in hospitals.
“The State of Idaho will not suffer any real harm if the Court issues the modest preliminary injunction the United States is requesting,” Winmill wrote.
U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland announced the lawsuit against Idaho earlier this month, and argued that the state’s law conflicted with a federal statute known as the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act, or EMTALA, which was enacted in 1986 to ensure patients receive adequate emergency medical care.
Get Boston local news, weather forecasts, lifestyle and entertainment stories to your inbox. Sign up for NBC Boston’s newsletters.
Read the full story at NBCNews.com
