Senate chairman demands answers from emergency rooms that denied care to pregnant patients

WASHINGTON (AP) — Hospitals are facing questions about why they denied care to pregnant patients and whether state abortion bans have influenced how they treat those patients.

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden, an Oregon Democrat, sent inquiries to nine hospitals ahead of a hearing Tuesday looking at whether abortion bans have prevented or delayed pregnant women from getting help during their miscarriages, ectopic pregnancies or other medical emergencies.

He is part of a Democratic effort to focus the nation's attention on the stories of women who have faced horrible realities since some states tightened a patchwork of abortion laws. The strict laws are injecting chaos and hesitation into the emergency room, Wyden said during Tuesday's hearing.

“Some states that have passed abortion bans into law claim that they contain exceptions if a woman’s life is at risk,” Wyden said. “In reality, these exceptions are forcing doctors to play lawyer. And lawyer to play doctor. Providers are scrambling to make impossible decisions between providing critical care or a potential jail sentence.”