Idaho group says it is exploring a ballot initiative for abortion rights and reproductive care

Source: ABC News/AP

April 19, 2024, 6:27 PM


BOISE, Idaho -- A new Idaho organization says it will ask voters to restore abortion access and other reproductive health care rights in the state after lawmakers let a second legislative session end without modifying strict abortion bans that have been blamed for a recent exodus of health care providers.

“We have not been able to get a fix from our lawmakers, our politicians. We are going to seek a fix from our people,” Melanie Folwell, a spokeswoman for Idahoans United for Women and Families, said Friday morning. “The people in Idaho understand the contours of this problem.”

Idaho has several anti-abortion laws on the books, including one that makes performing abortions a crime even in medical emergencies unless they are done to save the life of the pregnant patient. The federal government has sued Idaho over the ban, contending it violates a federal law that requires hospitals to provide stabilizing care — including abortion — if a patient's life or health is at serious risk.

Idaho's attorneys say the ban allows for life-saving procedures for things like ectopic pregnancies, and they contend the Biden administration is trying to create a federal “abortion loophole” at Idaho hospitals. The U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments in that case on Wednesday.

Read more: https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory/idaho-group-exploring-ballot-initiative-abortion-rights-reproductive-109442123