KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': Waiting for SCOTUS

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KFF Health NewsMay 30 2024

The host

Julie Rovner KFF Health News @jrovner

Julie Rovner is chief Washington correspondent and host of KFF Health News' weekly health policy news podcast, "What the Health?" A noted expert on health policy issues, Julie is the author of the critically praised reference book "Health Care Politics and Policy A to Z," now in its third edition.

June means it's time for the Supreme Court to render rulings on the biggest and most controversial cases of the term. This year, the court has two significant abortion-related cases: one involving the abortion pill mifepristone and the other regarding the conflict between a federal emergency care law and Idaho's near-total abortion ban.

Also awaiting resolution is a case that could dramatically change how the federal government makes health care (and all other types of) policies by potentially limiting agencies' authority in interpreting the details of laws through regulations. Rules stemming from the Affordable Care Act and other legislation could be affected.

In this special episode of "What the Health?", Laurie Sobel, an associate director for women's health policy at KFF, joins host Julie Rovner for a refresher on the cases, and a preview of how the justices might rule on them.

The cases highlighted in this episode:

Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo and Relentless Inc. v. Department of Commerce, about how much discretion federal agencies should have in interpreting laws passed by Congress.
U.S. Food and Drug Administration v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, about whether the FDA exceeded its authority in relaxing restrictions on the abortion pill mifepristone.
Moyle v. United States and Idaho v. United States, about whether the federal Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act requirement for hospitals participating in Medicare to provide needed medical care overrides Idaho's near-total abortion ban in emergency cases.

Previous "What the Health?" coverage of these cases:

Where to find Supreme Court opinions as they are announced:

The Supreme Court’s official website
The SCOTUSblog (not an official government website but run by lawyers and journalists)

Credits

Francis Ying Audio producer
Rebecca Adams Editor

This article was reprinted from khn.org, a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs at KFF - the independent source for health policy research, polling, and journalism.