Texas Sues Biden Administration for Threatening Hospitals, Doctors That Refuse to Perform Abortions

Texas attorney general Ken Paxton sued the Biden administration on Thursday over a memo it sent to hospitals and doctors across the country saying health-care providers are required under federal law to perform abortions in emergency situations regardless of state laws.

The memo warns that health care providers who fail to comply could face legal trouble and the loss of their participation in federal programs such as Medicare and Medicaid.

Paxton’s suit argues that the memo, which was released on Monday, violates the rights of doctors to choose whether to participate in an abortion and interferes with states’ authority to regulate abortion. The complaint says the guidance “forces hospitals and doctors to commit crimes and risk their licensure under Texas law.”

“President Biden is flagrantly disregarding the legislative and democratic process — and flouting the Supreme Court’s ruling before the ink is dry — by having his appointed bureaucrats mandate that hospitals and emergency medicine physicians must perform abortions,” the complaint reads.