BOISE, Idaho — Idaho lawmakers proposed Wednesday a new bill that could narrow down the number of lawsuits against doctors under Idaho’s abortion laws.

The proposal follows reports in the past few years that the state’s law criminalizing the procedure for medical providers has prompted doctors to flee the state and exacerbated a physician shortage. Sen. Todd Lakey, R-Nampa, said the legislation would allow courts to review cases early in the process and dismiss those without merit.

“This provides some confidence to lawful medical providers in that process,” Lakey told lawmakers in a legislative committee Wednesday.

Democratic lawmakers and abortion rights advocates have pushed for an exception to the law that would allow the procedure in cases when a pregnant patient’s health is at risk. This bill wouldn’t change exceptions, which remain for rape, incest and to prevent the death of the mother.

Under the bill, a judge reviewing the case would look to see whether the person suing put enough evidence in the complaint to establish a case.

“All it says is, you can’t be sued for violating the law frivolously,” Lakey said. “You can’t, essentially, weaponize the judicial system.”

The Idaho Medical Association did not immediately return a request for comment Wednesday. The Idaho Family Policy Center, a conservative lobbying group that pushed for the state’s abortion ban, declined to comment.

Sen. Melissa Wintrow, D-Boise, told the Statesman that the bill doesn’t address physicians’ concerns.

“This isn’t even a Band-Aid. I am not sure why they introduced this bill,” Wintrow said. “What we need is a true legitimate health exception.”

Since the U.S. Supreme Court in June 2022 overturned Roe v. Wade, which provided the constitutional right to an abortion and trigged Idaho’s abortion ban, medical providers have struggled to determine when the procedure violates the state’s laws. Patients undergoing miscarriages or complex pregnancies have had to seek care out of state, at times being airlifted out of the hospital, according to St. Luke’s Health System.

The Department of Justice under former President Joe Biden sued Idaho over its laws, arguing the regulations conflict with the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act, or EMTALA, according to previous Statesman reporting. That act defines “emergency medical conditions” as conditions that aren’t just life-threatening but also seriously endanger the health of the patient.

President Donald Trump’s administration dropped the lawsuit this year, but St. Luke’s Health System filed its own suit, according to previous Statesman reporting. U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill granted a temporary restraining order in the case.

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