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Yahoo
4 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Revoking EMTALA guidance on abortions will only further confuse doctors, experts say
In revoking federal guidance requiring emergency, life-saving abortions to protect the lives of pregnant women, the Trump Administration has added confusion to an already impossible situation for doctors, possibly putting women's lives at risk, experts told ABC News. "The rescission of this guidance is, contrary to its own statement, only further lending into the confusion that exists in emergency departments around the country, and it will put women's lives at risk," Alison Tanner, an attorney at the National Women's Law Center, told ABC News. "There have been countless stories of people across the country being denied emergency care, forced to wait in their cars in parking lots while they are actively bleeding, or being sent to different hospitals with a bucket and told to leave the state that they're in in order to get the care that they need," Tanner said. Earlier this week, the Trump administration revoked Biden-era federal guidance reminding hospitals that they are required to provide life-saving care, including abortions, in emergency situations under a federal law -- the Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act -- regardless of state law. The guidance was issued after Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022, ending federal protections for abortion rights. At least 13 states have total abortion bans in effect, according to the Guttmacher Institute. As the administration rolled back the guidance this week, a government agency also found that a Texas hospital "failed to ensure ... [Kyleigh Thurman] received an appropriate medical screening," when she presented to the emergency department in early 2023, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services said in a deficiency letter shared with ABC News. MORE: Trump administration rescinds Biden-era guidance requiring hospitals to perform emergency abortions Thurman ultimately needed to have a fallopian tube removed after it ruptured due to an ectopic pregnancy. Thurman said she was turned away twice from a local emergency room, without treatment. Another facility also denied her care twice, before her OB-GYN traveled to the hospital and convinced staff to end the pregnancy. She was rushed to surgery days later after the tube ruptured. Ectopic pregnancies are a dangerous complication that occurs when a fertilized egg implants and grows outside the uterus, in this case, in her fallopian tube. The treatment for an ectopic pregnancy is an abortion to prevent life-threatening complications. The hospital "did not appropriately screen [Thurman] for known risks associated with presenting signs, symptoms and test results including those which would constitute an [emergency medical condition], such as, but not limited to, ectopic pregnancy," the deficiency letter stated. "The hospital's failure to provide an appropriate medical screening examination, within the capability of the hospital's emergency department ... and consistent with the hospital's screening process, placed the patient at risk for deterioration of her health and wellbeing as a result of an untreated medical condition," the letter said. The determination was made after Thurman submitted an administrative complaint to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, an office within the Department of Health and Human Services, in August 2024. MORE: Meet 18 women who shared heartbreaking pregnancy journeys in post-Roe world "I know how incredibly horrible and how hard it was for me, and I didn't want anyone else to ever have to go through what I had to go through," Thurman told ABC News. Thurman said she did not know how Texas' near-total abortion ban could impact her health or even what an ectopic pregnancy is before she learned she was pregnant. "I never imagined myself being caught in the crosshairs, but I don't think that many people ever do. It only highlights how this can happen to anyone," Thurman said. "I really didn't have a thought on it, and it really didn't become evident to me how negatively [abortion bans] would impact women until it was impacting my life," Thurman said. "I didn't know what it all meant." Thurman said she wants to try for a family despite her experience. "A lot of people are like 'just move' and I'm like, 'it's not that simple when you have deep roots in a place.' This is my home. I am not leaving. I'd rather fight back than leave," Thurman said. The new guidance will only create more confusion around what is already "muddy and very confusing," Thurman said. It is now more of an environment where "mistakes can happen," Thurman said. Despite the rescinding of the guidance, hospitals and physicians are still required to provide stabilizing care, experts said. "EMTALA is still the law of the land. Hospitals and doctors must still comply with EMTALA," Astrid Ackerman, a staff attorney at the Center for Reproductive Rights who worked on filing EMTALA complaints, told ABC News. "What we're really concerned about is that this trend of that pregnant people cannot get the care that they need in this country, and more importantly, the care that hospitals and doctors want to provide," Ackerman said. Tanner said there is a real concern about whether the Trump administration will enforce EMTALA, especially after it dropped a federal lawsuit over Idaho's abortion ban, which does not allow abortions to save the life of the mother. An injunction in a separate EMTALA lawsuit by a hospital system in the state has blocked the ban. Doctors and hospitals are now stuck between "a rock and a hard place," trying to figure out what care they can provide, Tanner said. "Doctors and hospitals are being put in an untenable position. On the one hand, they are faced with state laws that would potentially impose severe criminal sanctions for providing necessary emergency abortion care," Tanner said. "And on the other hand, they have the federal law, EMTALA, which provides that both the federal government and individual patients can sue the hospital if they do not provide the necessary stabilizing care required under federal law," Tanner said. Revoking EMTALA guidance on abortions will only further confuse doctors, experts say originally appeared on
4 days ago
- Health
Revoking EMTALA guidance on abortions will only further confuse doctors, experts say
In revoking federal guidance requiring emergency, life-saving abortions to protect the lives of pregnant women, the Trump Administration has added confusion to an already impossible situation for doctors, possibly putting women's lives at risk, experts told ABC News. "The rescission of this guidance is, contrary to its own statement, only further lending into the confusion that exists in emergency departments around the country, and it will put women's lives at risk," Alison Tanner, an attorney at the National Women's Law Center, told ABC News. "There have been countless stories of people across the country being denied emergency care, forced to wait in their cars in parking lots while they are actively bleeding, or being sent to different hospitals with a bucket and told to leave the state that they're in in order to get the care that they need," Tanner said. Earlier this week, the Trump administration revoked Biden-era federal guidance reminding hospitals that they are required to provide life-saving care, including abortions, in emergency situations under a federal law -- the Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act -- regardless of state law. The guidance was issued after Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022, ending federal protections for abortion rights. At least 13 states have total abortion bans in effect, according to the Guttmacher Institute. As the administration rolled back the guidance this week, a government agency also found that a Texas hospital "failed to ensure ... [Kyleigh Thurman] received an appropriate medical screening," when she presented to the emergency department in early 2023, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services said in a deficiency letter shared with ABC News. Thurman ultimately needed to have a fallopian tube removed after it ruptured due to an ectopic pregnancy. Thurman said she was turned away twice from a local emergency room, without treatment. Another facility also denied her care twice, before her OB-GYN traveled to the hospital and convinced staff to end the pregnancy. She was rushed to surgery days later after the tube ruptured. Ectopic pregnancies are a dangerous complication that occurs when a fertilized egg implants and grows outside the uterus, in this case, in her fallopian tube. The treatment for an ectopic pregnancy is an abortion to prevent life-threatening complications. The hospital "did not appropriately screen [Thurman] for known risks associated with presenting signs, symptoms and test results including those which would constitute an [emergency medical condition], such as, but not limited to, ectopic pregnancy," the deficiency letter stated. "The hospital's failure to provide an appropriate medical screening examination, within the capability of the hospital's emergency department ... and consistent with the hospital's screening process, placed the patient at risk for deterioration of her health and wellbeing as a result of an untreated medical condition," the letter said. The determination was made after Thurman submitted an administrative complaint to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, an office within the Department of Health and Human Services, in August 2024. "I know how incredibly horrible and how hard it was for me, and I didn't want anyone else to ever have to go through what I had to go through," Thurman told ABC News. Thurman said she did not know how Texas' near-total abortion ban could impact her health or even what an ectopic pregnancy is before she learned she was pregnant. "I never imagined myself being caught in the crosshairs, but I don't think that many people ever do. It only highlights how this can happen to anyone," Thurman said. "I really didn't have a thought on it, and it really didn't become evident to me how negatively [abortion bans] would impact women until it was impacting my life," Thurman said. "I didn't know what it all meant." Thurman said she wants to try for a family despite her experience. "A lot of people are like 'just move' and I'm like, 'it's not that simple when you have deep roots in a place.' This is my home. I am not leaving. I'd rather fight back than leave," Thurman said. The new guidance will only create more confusion around what is already "muddy and very confusing," Thurman said. It is now more of an environment where "mistakes can happen," Thurman said. Despite the rescinding of the guidance, hospitals and physicians are still required to provide stabilizing care, experts said. "EMTALA is still the law of the land. Hospitals and doctors must still comply with EMTALA," Astrid Ackerman, a staff attorney at the Center for Reproductive Rights who worked on filing EMTALA complaints, told ABC News. "What we're really concerned about is that this trend of that pregnant people cannot get the care that they need in this country, and more importantly, the care that hospitals and doctors want to provide," Ackerman said. Tanner said there is a real concern about whether the Trump administration will enforce EMTALA, especially after it dropped a federal lawsuit over Idaho's abortion ban, which does not allow abortions to save the life of the mother. An injunction in a separate EMTALA lawsuit by a hospital system in the state has blocked the ban. Doctors and hospitals are now stuck between "a rock and a hard place," trying to figure out what care they can provide, Tanner said. "Doctors and hospitals are being put in an untenable position. On the one hand, they are faced with state laws that would potentially impose severe criminal sanctions for providing necessary emergency abortion care," Tanner said. "And on the other hand, they have the federal law, EMTALA, which provides that both the federal government and individual patients can sue the hospital if they do not provide the necessary stabilizing care required under federal law," Tanner said.
Hamilton Spectator
14-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Hamilton Spectator
Patricia Clarkson on playing her icon Lilly Ledbetter and the political moment greeting the movie
NEW YORK (AP) — The film 'Lilly,' a biopic about the equal pay icon Lilly Ledbetter, lands in theaters at a difficult time for her biggest political and civil rights champions. Many are gone or out of power, their hopes of building on Ledbetter's legacy interrupted by a more fundamental fight over President Donald Trump's shake-up of civil rights institutions . It's difficult not to flashforward to the present as the most famous of those supporters appear in interspersed documentary footage: the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, former first lady Michelle Obama and former President Barack Obama, who signed the 2009 Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act , which strengthened the right of workers to sue for pay discrimination. Less well-known is Jocelyn Samuels, played as a key character by Deirdre Lovejoy. Back then, Samuels was an executive at the National Women's Law Center, guiding Ledbetter through the halls of Congress as they lobbied for the law. Currently, Samuels is one of two Democratic commissioners fired by Trump from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, an unprecedented power play she is fighting in a lawsuit . Ledbetter died in October at the age of 86. The following month, Trump's election all but dashed Democratic hopes for passage any time soon of the more comprehensive Paycheck Fairness Act , which Ledbetter championed and would, among other measures, strengthen the ability of the EEOC to investigate pay discrimination. Patricia Clarkson, who stars as Ledbetter in 'Lilly,' doesn't shy away from the politics of the film, directed by Rachel Feldman. The Academy Award-nominee shared the red carpet with Clinton , who made a surprise appearance at the film's May 7 premier in New York City. She often recalls how her own mother, the late former Louisiana state legislator Jackie Clarkson , cried for joy when learning her daughter would play Ledbetter. In an interview with The Associated Press, Clarkson said the politics are a salient backdrop for what people should remember most: The resilience of a woman, who for most of her life, was an unknown working mother until an anonymous note tipped her off that her male co-workers were getting paid thousands of dollars more for the same job, and she decided to fight back. The conversation has been edited for brevity and clarity. Q: What did you do to prepare for the role? I understand you never met Lilly Ledbetter and it that it was an intentional choice. A: I imprint very easily with people and so I was afraid if I met Lilly, I would try to imitate her, play her. I realized that I owed her the very best of me as an actress, as a woman and a person. And the way to do that is to bring the best of you and to bring the best of yourself emotionally and physically and intellectually. And you can't do that if you are living with such an image. And Lilly is a very powerful image in my life. And so I had to kind of just bring her back to an ordinary life. Q: Did you did you dig into her writings or her speeches? A: I looked at a certain amount ... But I wanted her emotional life ever-present ... That's what's important because change is hard and people suffer to fight injustice .... I didn't care about mannerisms. I just wanted her emotional strife and struggle to be present. Q: It must have been hard to anticipate how different the political moment would be when the movie was released. A: I literally and figuratively had dreams of being on a press tour with Lilly. It was going to be the highlight of my life to be with this remarkable human being ... but then she passed. But maybe right now, is the greatest time for this film because it's reminding people that there can be accomplishments. Q: Is it a more difficult political climate for a film like this? A: I know the Democrats embraced her but let me tell you something: Lilly was not really a deeply political person, and that's something I held strong to ... And yeah, she spoke at the (Democratic National Convention) but she would have spoken at the (Republican National Convention) if she has been asked. Equal pay is equal pay. Whether you are North, South, East, West, whether you were red, blue or purple. She didn't care. Q: You also recently starred in 'She Said,' the 2022 film about the New York Times' uncovering of the sexual assault allegations against Harvey Weinstein . What are the parallels with 'Lilly'? A: It's all of a piece. It's a mindset of certain men we have had to work with, either in Hollywood or in the workforce ... Hollywood's come a long way because I've been in it since 1985, and I've spoken about this. We used to meet male producers and directors in hotel rooms and actors in hotel rooms, and we all thought that was fine. We were paid less throughout. I was paid less throughout the whole beginning of my career. Q: If there's one thing that you want the audience to take away about Lilly, what would it be? A: She got back up, and you should be a proud American when you watch her. _______ The Associated Press' women in the workforce and state government coverage receives financial support from Pivotal Ventures. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP's standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at .
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Patricia Clarkson on playing her icon Lilly Ledbetter and the political moment greeting the movie
NEW YORK (AP) — The film 'Lilly,' a biopic about the equal pay icon Lilly Ledbetter, lands in theaters at a difficult time for her biggest political and civil rights champions. Many are gone or out of power, their hopes of building on Ledbetter's legacy interrupted by a more fundamental fight over President Donald Trump's shake-up of civil rights institutions. It's difficult not to flashforward to the present as the most famous of those supporters appear in interspersed documentary footage: the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, former first lady Michelle Obama and former President Barack Obama, who signed the 2009 Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, which strengthened the right of workers to sue for pay discrimination. Less well-known is Jocelyn Samuels, played as a key character by Deirdre Lovejoy. Back then, Samuels was an executive at the National Women's Law Center, guiding Ledbetter through the halls of Congress as they lobbied for the law. Currently, Samuels is one of two Democratic commissioners fired by Trump from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, an unprecedented power play she is fighting in a lawsuit. Ledbetter died in October at the age of 86. The following month, Trump's election all but dashed Democratic hopes for passage any time soon of the more comprehensive Paycheck Fairness Act, which Ledbetter championed and would, among other measures, strengthen the ability of the EEOC to investigate pay discrimination. Patricia Clarkson, who stars as Ledbetter in 'Lilly,' doesn't shy away from the politics of the film, directed by Rachel Feldman. The Academy Award-nominee shared the red carpet with Clinton, who made a surprise appearance at the film's May 7 premier in New York City. She often recalls how her own mother, the late former Louisiana state legislator Jackie Clarkson, cried for joy when learning her daughter would play Ledbetter. In an interview with The Associated Press, Clarkson said the politics are a salient backdrop for what people should remember most: The resilience of a woman, who for most of her life, was an unknown working mother until an anonymous note tipped her off that her male co-workers were getting paid thousands of dollars more for the same job, and she decided to fight back. The conversation has been edited for brevity and clarity. Q: What did you do to prepare for the role? I understand you never met Lilly Ledbetter and it that it was an intentional choice. A: I imprint very easily with people and so I was afraid if I met Lilly, I would try to imitate her, play her. I realized that I owed her the very best of me as an actress, as a woman and a person. And the way to do that is to bring the best of you and to bring the best of yourself emotionally and physically and intellectually. And you can't do that if you are living with such an image. And Lilly is a very powerful image in my life. And so I had to kind of just bring her back to an ordinary life. Q: Did you did you dig into her writings or her speeches? A: I looked at a certain amount ... But I wanted her emotional life ever-present ... That's what's important because change is hard and people suffer to fight injustice .... I didn't care about mannerisms. I just wanted her emotional strife and struggle to be present. Q: It must have been hard to anticipate how different the political moment would be when the movie was released. A: I literally and figuratively had dreams of being on a press tour with Lilly. It was going to be the highlight of my life to be with this remarkable human being ... but then she passed. But maybe right now, is the greatest time for this film because it's reminding people that there can be accomplishments. Q: Is it a more difficult political climate for a film like this? A: I know the Democrats embraced her but let me tell you something: Lilly was not really a deeply political person, and that's something I held strong to ... And yeah, she spoke at the (Democratic National Convention) but she would have spoken at the (Republican National Convention) if she has been asked. Equal pay is equal pay. Whether you are North, South, East, West, whether you were red, blue or purple. She didn't care. Q: You also recently starred in 'She Said,' the 2022 film about the New York Times' uncovering of the sexual assault allegations against Harvey Weinstein. What are the parallels with 'Lilly'? A: It's all of a piece. It's a mindset of certain men we have had to work with, either in Hollywood or in the workforce ... Hollywood's come a long way because I've been in it since 1985, and I've spoken about this. We used to meet male producers and directors in hotel rooms and actors in hotel rooms, and we all thought that was fine. We were paid less throughout. I was paid less throughout the whole beginning of my career. Q: If there's one thing that you want the audience to take away about Lilly, what would it be? A: She got back up, and you should be a proud American when you watch her. _______ The Associated Press' women in the workforce and state government coverage receives financial support from Pivotal Ventures. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP's standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at Alexandra Olson, The Associated Press
Toronto Star
14-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Toronto Star
Patricia Clarkson on playing her icon Lilly Ledbetter and the political moment greeting the movie
NEW YORK (AP) — The film 'Lilly,' a biopic about the equal pay icon Lilly Ledbetter, lands in theaters at a difficult time for her biggest political and civil rights champions. Most are gone or out of power, their hopes of building on Ledbetter's legacy interrupted by a more fundamental fight over President Donald Trump's shake-up of civil rights institutions. It's difficult not to flashforward to the present as the most famous of those supporters appear in interspersed documentary footage: the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, former first lady Michelle Obama and former President Barack Obama, who signed the 2009 Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, which strengthened the right of workers to sue for pay discrimination. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW Less well-known is Jocelyn Samuels, played as a key character by Deirdre Lovejoy. Back then, Samuels was an executive at the National Women's Law Center, guiding Ledbetter through the halls of Congress as they lobbied for the law. Currently, Samuels is one of two Democratic commissioners fired by Trump from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, an unprecedented power play she is fighting in a lawsuit. Ledbetter died in October at the age of 86. The following month, Trump's election all but dashed Democratic hopes for passage any time soon of the more comprehensive Paycheck Fairness Act, which Ledbetter championed and would, among other measures, strengthen the ability of the EEOC to investigate pay discrimination. Patricia Clarkson, who stars as Ledbetter in 'Lilly,' doesn't shy away from the politics of the film, directed by Rachel Feldman. The Academy Award-nominee shared the red carpet with Clinton, who made a surprise appearance at the film's May 7 premier in New York City. She often recalls how her own mother, the late former Louisiana state legislator Jackie Clarkson, cried for joy when learning her daughter would play Ledbetter. In an interview with The Associated Press, Clarkson said the politics are a salient backdrop for what people should remember most: a woman who for most of her life was an unknown working mother until an anonymous note tipped her off that her male co-workers were getting paid thousands of dollars more for the same job, and she decided to fight back. The conversation has been edited for brevity and clarity. Q: What did you do to prepare for the role? I understand you never met Lilly Ledbetter and it that it was an intentional choice. A: I imprint very easily with people and so I was afraid if I met Lilly, I would try to imitate her, play her. I realized that I owed her the very best of me as an actress, as a woman and a person. And the way to do that is to bring the best of you and to bring the best of yourself emotionally and physically and intellectually. And you can't do that if you are living with such an image. And Lilly is a very powerful image in my life. And so I had to kind of just bring her back to an ordinary life. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW Q: Did you did you dig into her writings or her speeches? A: I looked at a certain amount ... But I wanted her emotional life ever-present ... That's what's important because change is hard and people suffer to fight injustice .... I didn't care about mannerisms. I just wanted her emotional strife and struggle to be present. Q: It must have been hard to anticipate how different the political moment would be when the movie was released. A: I literally and figuratively had dreams of being on a press tour with Lilly. It was going to be the highlight of my life to be with this remarkable human being ... but then she passed. But maybe right now, is the greatest time for this film because it's reminding people that there can be accomplishments. Q: Is it a more difficult political climate for a film like this? A: I know the Democrats embraced her but let me tell you something: Lilly was not really a deeply political person, and that's something I held strong to ... And yeah, she spoke at the (Democratic National Convention) but she would have spoken at the (Republican National Convention) if she has been asked. Equal pay is equal pay. Whether you are North, South, East, West, whether you were red, blue or purple. She didn't care. Q: You also recently starred in 'She Said,' the 2022 film about the New York Times' uncovering of the sexual assault allegations against Harvey Weinstein. What are the parallels with 'Lilly'? A: It's all of a piece. It's a mindset of certain men we have had to work with, either in Hollywood or in the workforce ... Hollywood's come a long way because I've been in it since 1985, and I've spoken about this. We used to meet male producers and directors in hotel rooms and actors in hotel rooms, and we all thought that was fine. We were paid less throughout. I was paid less throughout the whole beginning of my career. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW Q: If there's one thing that you want the audience to take away about Lilly, what would it be? A: She got back up, and you should be a proud American when you watch her. _______ The Associated Press' women in the workforce and state government coverage receives financial support from Pivotal Ventures. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP's standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at
