At a House Energy Committee hearing on Tuesday, Rep. Lizzie Fletcher (D-TX) questioned Sec. Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. about the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act.
00:00Here now recognizes the general lady from Texas, Representative Fletcher, for five minutes of
00:04questioning. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Secretary Kennedy, do you know the requirements for
00:10hospitals under the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act, which is commonly called by its
00:16shortened name, EMTALA? Yes, I do. And just generally, what do you know EMTALA to require
00:23of hospitals? Every hospital has to treat anybody who comes to the emergency room.
00:28And they have to provide stabilizing care regardless of their ability to pay and
00:35regardless of the type of care required, correct? Exactly. And Secretary Kennedy, you understand that
00:41American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, the American Medical Association, and the Society
00:47for Maternal-Fetal Medicine, in certain circumstances, necessary stabilizing care for the purposes of
00:54fulfilling a hospital's obligation under EMTALA could be providing abortion care, correct?
01:00In cases, for example, atopic pregnancies and botched abortions and in miscarriages,
01:08those hospitals are required to provide care. Elective abortions, they're not.
01:15But they are required to provide abortion care if that is the care that a physician treating the
01:21patient determines in their medical judgment is the care necessary to stabilize the patient
01:25and to protect their life and health, correct? And I, because there were confusion about that,
01:32I sent out a letter to every hospital in America restating that in those conditions,
01:40they must provide care. Okay. And I think that that's consistent with what we have heard from
01:50emergency physicians, obstetricians, other treating physicians that have made clear that in certain
01:56circumstances, clinically recognized, evidence-based, necessary medical treatment in various
02:02circumstances, including but not limited to the ones you just listed, abortion care is the necessary
02:08stabilizing care or some kind of care that may into pregnancy. So in those cases, you would agree
02:13with me that EMTALA requires the hospitals to provide that care. Yes. And that's what President
02:19Trump believes. And you issued, you just mentioned that you issued some guidance to all the hospitals
02:27and care providers across the country, rescinding some guidance from the prior administration and making
02:34clear that that is the requirement. Now the guidance that that you rescinded was issued shortly after the Dobbs decision,
02:42which announced was announced three years ago today, and created some confusion. And so I think one thing that's
02:49important, one thing that I hear from doctors in states like mine, is that this kind of guidance and clarity is very, very
02:57very important to giving the practicing physicians the comfort that they need to do their jobs. And so I think it's really
03:07important that you continue, and I hope that you'll continue to make as clear as you have today in this hearing, that EMTALA
03:15ensures and protects pregnant women in all 50 states.
03:21I will continue to do that, Congresswoman. And with the time I have left, on one other note, in response to some
03:30questions from Mr. Pallone earlier, he talked about, as I believe Ranking Member DeGette has as well, several of the
03:37letters that our committee has sent, or members of our committee have sent to you with concerns about actions
03:44being taken at HHS. And certainly, I agree with a lot of those concerns. I represent Houston, Texas, and we have an
03:51incredible amount of research going on through National Institutes of Health, incredible development of all
03:59kinds of transformative therapies and treatments. And so we have a lot of concerns. I know you mentioned that you get, have
04:10gotten thousands of letters from members of Congress, and I can appreciate that. But I would ask that, recognizing that this
04:18committee, the House Energy and Commerce Committee has jurisdiction and is the committee of jurisdiction over HHS, that the
04:24requests that come from the ranking member that come from the Energy and Commerce Committee get prioritized by your staff. In terms of
04:32looking at congressional responses, I think it would be very important. Because we have jurisdiction and you've indicated you'll work with a lot of
04:40folks here on a lot of different issues, and getting those answers and being able to work to address the concerns that we have is really important.
04:47So I just ask that you prioritize those responses.
04:49You have my commitment to do that, Congresswoman. And I would also say this, and it's the same thing that I said to Congresswoman Dingell.
04:57It's not our intention to cut anything that is the kind of research that you're talking about. It's a critical research. We need to keep America the hub of that kind of research.
05:08And there was some malicious compliance. There was some mistakes made.
05:13Thank you, Mr. Secretary. If the General Ladies' time is-
