Texas abortion opponents wasted no time in requesting a stay to the Pitman ruling. Pitman’s decision, which describes SB 8 as an “unprecedented and transparent statutory scheme,” offered a clear-cut defense of abortion rights, and for a brief period following Wednesday’s injunction, some abortion providers resumed performing abortions past the six-week mark - albeit with a sense of trepidation, according to the Texas Tribune. On Wednesday, US District Court Judge Robert Pitman’s pointed, 113-page ruling temporarily brought a halt to SB 8, granting a two-day reprieve to patients seeking abortions and facilities performing them. The Fifth Circuit panel could then decide to extend the stay.Īs Vox’s Anna North explained last month, SB 8 has dramatically affected the lives of pregnant people in Texas since it was enacted on September 1, forcing them to carry unwanted pregnancies or leave the state to receive care while potentially incurring significant costs for travel, lodging, and child care, in addition to lost wages from missed work.Īlready, according to a PBS NewsHour report, at least 300 Texans seeking abortions have sought care in Oklahoma, putting a strain not only on them but on the resources of the Oklahoma providers and patients, too. For now, Friday’s stay has blocked the district court injunction - but it’s still undecided whether it will remain in place in the long term.Īccording to Friday’s court order, the Biden Justice Department has until Tuesday to respond to Texas’s emergency motion to stay the district court’s injunction.
The suit has resulted in a whiplash-inducing back-and-forth by the courts this week, with the status of reproductive health care in Texas hanging in the balance. That temporary stay is just the latest development in a September lawsuit filed by the Biden Justice Department against the state of Texas, which argues that SB 8 is unconstitutional. Now: Texas's 6-week abortion ban law, SB 8, is in effect again for now - the 5th Circuit has granted a temporary, administrative stay of this week's preliminary injunction (which halted enforcement of SB 8) to consider the state's request for a longer stay pending appeal /wdTIH5emjm- Zoe Tillman October 9, 2021