Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes is joining attorneys general from several other states to call for courts to uphold Americans' right to an abortion during a medical emergency.
Shortly after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the Roe v. Wade decision last summer, the Biden administration issued guidance reiterating that, under the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act, hospitals must provide abortions in life-threatening situations. But in August, a judge in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas blocked that guidance from being applied in Texas.
This week, Mayes signed onto an amicus brief with attorneys general from 20 other states and the District of Columbia supporting the Biden administration’s appeal in the Texas case. They argue the Texas judge's decision harms patients and puts strain on health care systems in states where abortion remains legal — like Arizona.
Mayes is a democrat and made abortion a central issue in her 2022 campaign for state attorney general. Last week, she signed onto another multistate amicus brief defending the use of the abortion drug mifepristone.
