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PREVIOUSLY:

• Attorney General Sues St. Joseph Hospital for Denying a Woman Emergency Abortion Care
• Providence Offers ‘Profound Apologies’ to Woman Denied Emergency Abortion Care at St. Joseph Hospital
• A Local Doctor Urged St. Joseph Hospital to Change Its Anti-Abortion Policies Long Before State Lawsuit, According to Court Declaration
• St. Joseph Hospital Denies Allegations in State Abortion Care Lawsuit But Agrees to Follow State Health Care Laws as the Case Proceeds

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A month after being sued by the California Attorney General’s Office for refusing to provide emergency abortion services, Providence St. Joseph Hospital is now legally bound to provide such care after Humboldt County Superior Court Judge Timothy Canning signed an order codifying the agreement recently reached by both parties.

Per the terms of the agreement, St. Joseph Hospital must fully comply with California’s Emergency Services Law (ESL) with respect to pregnant patients’ emergency medical conditions. This means the hospital must specifically allow its physicians to terminate a patient’s pregnancy whenever the treating physician determines that it’s necessary to prevent serious health risk.

St. Joseph Hospital must also provide written notice of the order to its medical staff and “each and every physician with privileges” by next Tuesday, seven days from when Judge Canning signed the order.

Attorney General Rob Bonta’s lawsuit alleges that Providence St. Joseph Hospital fails to provide adequate emergency services and care to pregnant patients in danger of “loss of life, or serious injury or illness.” In one specific case, it accuses hospital staff of denying an emergency abortion to Dr. Anna Nusslock, a Eureka chiropractor who was just 15 weeks pregnant when she arrived to the hospital hemorrhaging and in severe pain.

“Despite the immediate threat to her life and health, and despite the fact her pregnancy was no longer viable, Providence refused to treat her,” Bonta’s office said in a press release. Care providers instead sent Nusslock up to Mad River Community Hospital. “On the way out the door, Providence handed Nusslock a bucket and towels ‘in case something happens in the car,’” the suit alleges.

The Catholic-owned hospital has denied the allegations. The agreement (or “stipulation”) says both parties “desire to ensure that pregnant patients receive adequate treatment for emergency medical conditions, based on the professional judgment of the treating physician.”

It also says that the parties have begun discussions about a settlement of the suit.

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DOCUMENT: Stipulation and Signed Order