Gov. Newsom Condemns CMS Rollback of Emergency Protections for Pregnant Women as “Unnecessary Danger”

SACRAMENTO — Gov. Gavin Newsom June 3 decried the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ or CMS decision to rescind previous guidance reaffirming protections under the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act or EMTALA for emergency abortion care when medically necessary. The rescission, effective May 29, 2025, confirms that CMS will not enforce EMTALA when hospitals do not provide emergency abortion care necessary to stabilize a patient’s health

What this means for patients

While today’s ruling does not impact women in California, it will likely have an increasingly chilling effect on hospitals and physicians, particularly in states with total abortion bans that do not make exceptions for the health of the pregnant person (Arkansas, Idaho, Mississippi, Oklahoma, and South Dakota). Hospitals and physicians in these states are legally prohibited from providing abortion as a stabilizing treatment for women experiencing emergency medical conditions, unless that condition becomes life-threatening.
 

How we got here

Following the Supreme Court’s decision Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health, President Joe Biden’s administration issued guidance stating that: “A physician’s professional and legal duty to provide stabilizing medical treatment to a patient… preempts any directly conflicting state law or mandate that might otherwise prohibit or prevent such treatment.” The guidance clarified that hospitals and physicians have an obligation to provide stabilizing care, including abortion, if that is necessary to stabilize a patient experiencing an emergency medical condition.

The Biden administration sued the state of Idaho in August 2022 arguing that their near-total abortion ban was in violation of EMTALA. In June 2024, the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling meant that hospitals in Idaho could perform emergency services, including abortions, to save the life of a pregnant woman. At the time, the court declined to make clear that federal law protects pregnant women in emergency settings. The Trump administration dismissed that lawsuit in March.

The American Civil Liberties Union or ACLU reported that for nearly four decades, EMTALA has been understood by medical providers and the federal government — including both Democratic and Republican administrations — to require abortion care when that care is needed to stabilize pregnant patients in a medical crisis. As Doctors for America’s motion to intervene emphasized, stripping away EMTALA’s protections would put doctors in legal chaos and force them to violate their sworn duty: to save lives and prevent harm.

Details: People seeking abortion care or information about reproductive health care in California, should visit Abortion.CA.Gov.