Trump administration drops Idaho Abortion lawsuit

IDAHO (KIFI) - President Donald Trump’s administration took a major step Wednesday in support of states with sweeping abortion bans, dropping a Biden-era lawsuit against Idaho that sought to protect abortion access in medical emergencies.

The Biden administration had prevailed in early stages of the lawsuit challenging Idaho’s extremely strict abortion restrictions, with the Supreme Court last year leaving in place a temporary court order that allows Idaho hospitals to provide abortion when a pregnancy endangers a woman’s life or health.

In a court filing Wednesday, the Justice Department said it was now dropping the lawsuit.

The Biden-era federal lawsuit was followed by a court filing by St. Luke's Health System, Idaho's largest abortion provider, which sued the Idaho attorney general over the abortion ban.

While the federal suit is expected to be dropped, the U.S. District Court for Idaho granted a temporary restraining order Tuesday in favor of St. Luke’s and its patients to ensure access to emergency rooms under EMTALA.

Pro-Life America commends the move by the Trump Administration

Pro-Life America Director of Legal Affairs & Policy Counsel Katie Daniel commended the Trump-Vance administration and slammed the restraining order:

“Democrats’ abortion extremism cost them the election. With President Trump and a new administration in charge, Biden’s weaponization of the federal government is over – no more lawfare. The will of the people is clear, and activist judges must not interfere.

“Idaho’s Defense of Life Act protecting babies and their mothers throughout pregnancy was upheld by the state Supreme Court in 2023. There is no conflict between Idaho’s law and federal law, which never mentions abortion but specifically mentions several times that the ‘unborn child’ is also a patient any time a pregnant woman comes to the emergency room. Idaho’s law protects more than 1,500 babies a year, and like every pro-life law in the country, nothing in it stops pregnant women from receiving emergency medical care. This care is absolutely legal.

“We thank President Trump, Attorney General Pam Bondi, and our allies in Idaho, particularly state Attorney General Raul Labrador. We continue encouraging every pro-life state to adopt ‘Med Ed’ policies to make it crystal clear how doctors can use their medical judgment and comply with the law. Politically motivated lies and excuses are harming women and their babies, and they need to stop," writes Daniel.

The Trump Administration's decision sparks outcry among Idaho democrats

In response to the potential decision, Idaho Democratic Party Chair Lauren Necochea released the following statement:

“No woman should be denied lifesaving care, forfeit her future fertility, have to wait until she’s near death, or be forced to flee her home state just to receive the health care she needs," writes Necochea.

"But that is exactly what happens in Idaho. This lawsuit was a critical safeguard to protect access to emergency medical care that is supposed to be guaranteed under federal law. Idaho's Republican leaders knowingly allowed women to suffer, and by abandoning this case, the Trump administration is proving it will do nothing to stop it.

"Now, more Idaho women will be airlifted out of state or face worse consequences due to an extreme Republican abortion ban. Idaho’s ban mirrors those in other states that have caused women to die. Make no mistake: This is part of the Republican Party’s extreme agenda to ban abortion nationwide, no matter the consequences for women’s health and lives.”

The Idaho Joint Democratic Legislative Caucus has joined Necochea in denouncing the Trump administration's decision. The Caucus has released the following statement regarding the decision:

Pregnant women in Idaho facing medical emergencies are being placed at serious risk. The Trump administration plans to drop the federal lawsuit that has been the only legal safeguard ensuring pregnant women can receive necessary abortion care in health emergencies. 

House Minority Leader Ilana Rubel says, “The safety of women in Idaho just took a dark turn. The only lifeline we have had to protect us from a total abortion ban that lacks any health exception is a court injunction secured through the Biden Administration’s lawsuit against Idaho. But the Trump Administration is cutting that lifeline, dropping the lawsuit and seeking to end all the protections for women that came with it.” 

In the absence of moral leadership from GOP politicians to protect pregnant patients in Idaho facing dire health emergencies, St. Luke’s Health System brought a lawsuit of its own in January 2025 to mirror the DOJ lawsuit that the Trump administration is abandoning this week. We are hopeful this will succeed in protecting essential emergency abortion care. 

Senate Minority Leader Melissa Wintrow says, “It is unconscionable that GOP politicians at both the state and federal level have made this necessary. It remains to be seen if St. Luke’s lawsuit will succeed in sustaining the injunction that has provided at least a modicum of safety for pregnant women in our state, but we should not have to rely on a private entity to defend our safety from reckless Republican elected officials.” 

In the brief period of time when Idaho did not have an injunction in place, we had a window into the dystopian future that awaits us should the injunction be permanently lost. Pregnant women suffering health emergencies had to be regularly airlifted out of Idaho in order to receive the full spectrum of medically necessary care that is readily available in neighboring states. 

The U.S. District Court for Idaho granted a temporary restraining order today in favor of St. Luke’s and its patients to ensure access to emergency rooms under EMTALA. This is not an assurance of long-term safety, but it is at least a brief reprieve from some of the most dangerous repercussions of Idaho’s total abortion ban.