Conflicting Decisions

Idaho passes even more abortion restrictions, while Washington fights for access and federal courts issue conflicting rulings

BY SAMANTHA WOHLFEIL

As the nation waited to learn the future of a medication used in more than half of all abortions, Northwest leaders were at odds in recent weeks, with Idaho further restricting abortion while Washington took more steps to protect access.

For now, the country has conflicting rulings on the medication.

A Texas lawsuit — brought against the Food and Drug Administration by anti-abortion groups and doctors — asked a federal judge to block the FDA’s nearly 23-year-old approval of mifepristone, which he did on April 7.

The drug is part of a two-medication regimen used to end a pregnancy up to 10 weeks. Medication abortions accounted for 53 percent of abortions in 2020, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Meanwhile, Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson and his peers in 17 other states had filed a federal lawsuit in Spokane seeking to expand mifepristone access. The medication is one of only a few dozen drugs — including fentanyl — with extra restrictions on doctors and pharmacies that want to dispense them. The lawsuit seeks to remove those restrictions, which are intended for drugs with serious safety concerns. Within hours of the Texas ruling, the federal judge hearing the Washington case issued a preliminary injunction blocking the FDA from “altering the status quo” for access to mifepristone in the 18 states involved in the lawsuit while it moves forward.

In the meantime, Idaho and Washington continue pulling in opposite directions.

Stockpiled Supply

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee announced last week that he had directed the state Department of Corrections, which holds a pharmacy license, to purchase 30,000 doses of mifepristone for nearly $1.3 million. That ensures there’s a roughly three-year statewide supply if the Texas case halts manufacturing of the drug. The University of Washington also purchased 10,000 doses, Inslee said, adding more of a backup.

Inslee said the step was necessary because anti-abortion lawmakers and groups in other states are trying to block access everywhere they can, noting it feels like there are “tentacles coming at us from every direction.”

“Women in Washington are under attack from a multi-hydra-headed beast that’s coming after this right,” Inslee told reporters on April 4. “We are not sitting idly by while that threat exists.”

The backup supply could last less time if and when women from other states come to Washington to access abortion. Many Idaho abortion patients already sought care in Washington before the overturning of Roe v. Wade last year, but since the Dobbs decision triggered a near total ban in Idaho, places like Washington and Oregon have become the closest legal options.

To ensure the medication can be distributed, state Sen. Karen Keiser, D-Des Moines, sponsored a bill to explicitly allow the Washington Corrections Department to dispense the doses to health clinics around the state.

“Abortion rights and reproductive freedom means nothing without access,” Keiser told reporters. “If patients don’t have access, they might as well not have a legal right.”

Abortion Trafficking And Exceptions

Inslee also sent a letter asking Idaho Gov. Brad Little to veto a measure that makes it a felony to transport minors to another state to receive an abortion without their parents’ permission. However, Little signed House Bill 242 into law on April 5. Those found guilty would face two to five years in prison.

Little noted that the new law doesn’t prevent adult women from going out of state for an abortion.

“Rather, the ‘abortion trafficking’ provision in the bill seeks only to prevent unemancipated minor girls from being taken across state lines for an abortion without the knowledge and consent of her parent or guardian,” Little wrote in a letter to Idaho House Speaker Mike Moyle, R-Star.

In 2020, 53 abortions were obtained by Idaho minors 17 years old or younger, according to the CDC.

Parental consent is not required for minors to receive an abortion in Washington.

Little also signed an update to the state’s abortion ban that includes exceptions to prevent the death of the mother, or for cases of rape or incest that were reported to the police. The update also clarifies that treating ectopic pregnancies and miscarriages isn’t considered abortion. Previously, the ban offered “affirmative defenses” that a health care provider could offer after being arrested and taken to court. Those who provide abortions outside of those exceptions could still lose their medical license and face no less than two years in prison.

On Sale Tomorrow

FOX PRESENTS

The Mountain Goats

Monday, October 9, 2023 7:30PM

APRIL @ THE FOX!

MASTERWORKS 8

James, Zuill & Mozart

Saturday, April 15 7:30PM

Sunday, April 16 3:00PM

Chelsea Handler: Little Big B*tch

Thursday, April 20 SOLD OUT!

Friday, April 21 7:30PM

ACLU VS. IDAHO AG

Last week the American Civil Liberties Union filed yet another lawsuit — this one in Idaho federal court — on behalf of Idaho’s Planned Parenthood provider and doctors concerned about a legal opinion from Idaho Attorney General Raúl Labrador.

On March 27, Labrador broadly interpreted Idaho’s near total ban on abortion, saying that even promoting abortion pills or referring patients to legal out-of-state abortion providers is illegal.

The lawsuit claims that opinion violates the First Amendment, the Commerce Clause and the Due Process Clause.

The plaintiffs also say it could result in even more doctors leaving the state. In March, Bonner General Health in Sandpoint announced that the hospital will end all obstetric care, citing staffing issues, low birth rates and the political climate.

“The Attorney General’s censorship forces me to act in a manner that is contrary to my medical training, denies my patients access to safe care that I am trained to provide, impedes my right to speak to and counsel my patients, and will greatly harm many Idahoans,” writes Dr. Caitlin Gustafson in a declaration filed with the lawsuit. “It is untenable for a physician to censor herself and refuse to provide information that a patient needs — it is a breach of my basic duties as a healthcare provider.” n samanthaw@inlander.com

Park

Saturday, April 29 3PM and 7:30PM

Film played it it’s entirety with score played LIVE by the orchestra.

Whitworth Symphony Orchestra: “Portrait of Portugal”

Sunday, April 30 7:30pm

National

Geographic Live: Cosmic Adventures

Saturday, April 22 7PM

Sponsored regionally in partnership with

TICKETS: 509 624 1200 • FOXTHEATERSPOKANE.ORG