A closely divided Supreme Court has upheld a Texas statute that prohibits most abortions, depriving most women in the country's second-largest state of their access to an abortion.
The Supreme Court ruled 5-4 on Thursday morning to dismiss an emergency appeal filed by abortion doctors and others seeking to stop the law from taking effect on Wednesday.
The Texas law, which was signed by Republican Governor Greg Abbott in May, prohibits abortions after medical professionals discover heart activity, which normally occurs around six weeks and before most women are aware that they are pregnant.
It is the most stringent anti-abortion bill in the United States since the Supreme Court's landmark Roe v. Wade decision in 1973, and it is part of a larger Republican campaign across the country to impose additional abortion restrictions. At least 12 other states have passed early pregnancy bans, but they have all been prohibited from taking effect.
The Texas law was not halted by the top court, which issued its decision shortly before midnight on Wednesday.
“We emphasize that in reaching this conclusion, we do not intend to resolve any jurisdictional or substantive claim in the applicants' lawsuit definitively. This order, in particular, is not based on any determination concerning the legality of Texas law, and it in no way precludes additional procedurally legitimate challenges to Texas law, including in Texas state courts,” the court wrote in an unsigned order.
Chief Justice John Roberts, Justice Stephen Breyer, Justice Sonia Sotomayor, and Justice Elena Kagan were among the four justices who disagree.
Texas lawmakers enacted the statute to avoid federal court review by permitting private persons to sue anyone engaged in an abortion other than the patient in state court. Other abortion laws are enforced by state and municipal authorities, with possible criminal penalties.
The measure's opponents sought supreme court review after a federal appeals court refused to enable a speedy review of the bill before it went into force.
Texas has historically maintained some of the harshest abortion restrictions in the country, including a statute enacted in 2013. The law was finally overturned by the Supreme Court, but not before more than half of the state's 40 clinics had shuttered.
Even before the Texas case reached the Supreme Court, the justices had expected to take on the topic of abortion rights in a significant case once the court resumed hearings in the autumn. The state of Mississippi is asking to be allowed to implement an abortion ban after 15 weeks of pregnancy in this case.
While similar "heartbeat" measures have been passed in a dozen other states, they have all been struck down by the courts. The Texas version is unique in that it is purposefully meant to shield government employees from enforcement, making it more difficult to secure legal challenges. Instead, it encourages any US citizen to file a civil lawsuit against an abortion practitioner or anybody who “aides or abets” the practice.
According to state abortion providers, the law "immediately and catastrophically reduces abortion access in Texas" and will likely cause numerous abortion facilities to close. It will prevent the majority of Texas women (85%) from getting an abortion because most aren't realize they're pregnant until they're six weeks along.
“Abortion access will be thrown into complete chaos,” says Amanda Williams, executive director of the Lilith Fund, an abortion support organization that was a plaintiff in the law's challenge. “Unfortunately, many people who require the most access will fall through the cracks, as we have seen in our state over the years with the relentless attacks.
“It's incredible that Texas politicians got away with passing such a devastating and cruel law that will harm so many people.”
On Wednesday, Vice President Joe Biden denounced the new law and reaffirmed the White House's support for abortion rights. In a statement, Biden stated, "This extreme Texas law blatantly violates the constitutional right established under Roe v Wade and upheld as a precedent for nearly half a century."
Despite the fact that it is against their best medical practices, Planned Parenthood, which has 11 clinics in the state, and Whole Woman's Health clinics assured the Guardian that they would comply with the draconian rule. Texas clinics say they were forced to turn away patients who needed abortion care at the law's cutoff point this week and in the near future in the days leading up to its passage.
Some abortion doctors in Texas have decided to stop performing procedures in order to avoid the possibility of frivolous and expensive litigation.
“Even though it is unethical, inhumane, and unjust,” Dr. Ghazaleh Moayedi, a Texas abortion physician and OB-GYN, stated, “we are all going to comply with the law.” “It puts my livelihood in jeopardy, and I fully expect to be sued. But my greatest concern is ensuring that the most vulnerable members of my community, the Black and Latinx patients I treat, who are already facing logistical and financial challenges, receive the care they require.”
