Bill > HCR6

This concurrent resolution affirms and supports the requirement that hospitals provide life-saving emergency care to pregnant individuals, including reproductive and abortion services, when such care is medically necessary to stabilize a patient under the Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act (EMTALA). EMTALA is a federal law enacted in 1986 that mandates hospitals receiving Medicare funding to offer medical screening and stabilizing treatment for emergency medical conditions, regardless of a patient's ability to pay. The resolution acknowledges that EMTALA has historically been interpreted to require abortion care when it is the necessary stabilizing treatment for life- or health-threatening conditions like hemorrhage or ectopic pregnancy, and it expresses concern over recent federal policy shifts that have created confusion and led to delays or denials of care in some states. It also addresses the issue of religiously affiliated hospitals asserting objections, noting that EMTALA does not permit religious exemptions, and emphasizes that failing to provide timely emergency care can have severe consequences. The resolution highlights that Hawaii hospitals have a strong record of providing such care and urges all hospitals in the state to continue upholding these standards and ensuring no pregnant patient in a medical emergency is denied or delayed stabilizing treatment.

https://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/session/measure_indiv.aspx?billtype=HCR&billnumber=6&year=2026