‘A grave rollback of our rights:’ Idaho leaders react to the overruling of Roe v. Wade
The U.S. Supreme Court announced Friday a decision to overturn landmark cases on abortion, returning decision-making on abortion to the states. Many states, including Idaho, have laws in place that will effectively ban all abortions.
The court’s decision comes about a month after Politico published a leaked draft opinion showing Supreme Court justices’ intent to overturn Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey, cases that established a right to choose abortion, as well as a time frame for legal abortion and parameters for restrictions on the procedure.
The decision eventually will trigger an Idaho law that makes it a felony for health care providers to perform abortions. The only exceptions are in instances where a mother’s life is at risk because of the pregnancy or if the pregnancy was caused by incest or rape that was reported to law enforcement.
According to statistics from the Idaho Coalition Against Sexual and Domestic Violence, only 25% of all rapes and sexual assaults in Idaho were reported to police in 2018, which is the most recent year data was available.
In March, Idaho lawmakers approved a bill that would allow some family members to sue health care providers who perform abortions for a minimum of $20,000. The law applies to any abortions performed after about six weeks, when many critics of abortion rights say an embryo’s heartbeat can be detected. Medical experts have said the heartbeat is better described as electrical activity and is often detectable before many women know they’re pregnant.
Gov. Brad Little expressed concern about the constitutionality of the bill before signing it, and Planned Parenthood quickly filed a lawsuit. The Idaho Supreme Court is set to hear oral arguments on Aug. 3. It wasn’t immediately clear what would happen with the lawsuit in light of the U.S. Supreme Court ruling.
Idaho Democratic, Republican leaders react
House Assistant Minority Leader Lauren Necochea, D-Boise, who chairs the Idaho Democratic Party, said in a Friday morning news release that Roe v. Wade protected Idaho from the “most extreme positions” of Republican leaders, and now Idahoans are losing that protection.
“I never expected to see such a grave rollback of our rights in the 21st century,” Necochea said in the release. “I am shocked that young Americans just lost rights that their parents were guaranteed and for which their grandparents fought.”
Necochea said that Friday’s decision “starts the clock on a terrifying countdown here in Idaho,” referring to the state’s trigger law, which will go into effect later this summer.
“This law is especially cruel because it only applies to those who don’t have the resources to find a way around it,” Necochea said. “People with means will be able to flee the state to receive abortion care, while Idahoans facing low wages, including a disproportionate share of people of color, will face involuntary pregnancy.”
In a news release, Little said he welcomes the “long-awaited decision upholding state sovereignty and protecting preborn lives.”
“Today’s decision is the culmination of pro-life efforts to defend the defenseless — preborn babies who deserve protection. It also is affirmation of states’ rights, a fundamental aspect of our American government,” Little said.
He added that while this is a “monumental moment” for the United States, there will be “growing needs for women and families in the months and years ahead.” Idaho’s families, churches, charities and local and state governments need to be ready to “lift them up and help them and their families” with access to services including adoption, health care, financial and food assistance needs, counseling and family planning, he said.
The Idaho Republican Party, in a statement, commended Little and other Republican leaders.
“Today’s historic Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade reaffirms the principle that all life is a precious gift from God and confirms the inalienable rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness,” GOP Chairman Tom Luna said in the statement.
A statement from the Idaho Joint Democratic Caucus called the ruling a “misguided decision” and said it will disproportionately affect low-income women who can’t afford to travel elsewhere to have an abortion.
“The Supreme Court just made millions of women second-class citizens,” House Minority Leader Ilana Rubel said in the news release.
Necochea said Idaho Democrats will continue to fight for reproductive rights “for as long as it takes.”
Boise Mayor Lauren McLean posted on Twitter that she “remains steadfast” in support of people who need access to abortion care. McLean added that the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision will be harmful to women of color and low-income women.
“I am infuriated, (and) intensely worried,” McLean tweeted. “The decision to terminate a pregnancy is deeply personal and private. This decision by the Supreme Court will have devastating consequences on the health, privacy, (and) economic independence of women throughout our community, state, and nation.”
Idaho Family Policy Center president Blaine Conzatti, who was at the forefront of passing Idaho’s newest abortion bill, told the Idaho Statesman that the decision puts Idaho’s heartbeat law on “stronger footing.”
“We plan to use every legal avenue available to us to ensure that preborn children in the state of Idaho receive the same constitutional protection that every other person is accorded,” Conzatti said.
Family physicians academy ‘deeply concerned’
The Idaho Academy of Family Physicians said in a news release that a majority of its members support access to abortion care and are “deeply concerned” about the overruling of Roe v. Wade. The organization encompasses over 80% of Idaho’s family physicians, Executive Director Liz Woodruff told the Statesman.
“The IAFP supports the evidence-based practice of medicine and opposes policies that criminalize the patient-physician relationship and inhibit the delivery of safe and timely comprehensive care,” the organization said.
Idaho’s trigger law criminalizes health care providers for performing or attempting to perform an abortion, according to state law. If convicted, a health care professional could face anywhere from two to five years in prison and would have their license suspended for six months. If they violated the law a second time, their license would be permanently revoked.
The Idaho Academy of Family Physicians said it “strongly opposes” any external interference between patients and physicians because it conflicts “with the fundamental medical principle of patient autonomy.”
“The IAFP supports and advocates for health equity,” the news release said. “Restricting access to comprehensive reproductive health services will lead to unsafe abortions and unsafe pregnancies which will disproportionately affect people of color, low-income individuals, rural residents, and other vulnerable populations.”
This story was originally published June 24, 2022 at 9:09 AM.
