US Supreme Court refuses to block Texas abortion ban

Divided court denies emergency request for an injunction barring enforcement of the most restrictive abortion measure since 1973.

The Supreme Court of the United States has refused to block a Texas law banning abortion after six weeks of pregnancy. The judges voted 5-4 early on Thursday to deny an emergency appeal from abortion providers and others that sought to block enforcement of the law. The so-called Heartbeat Act, which went into effect on Wednesday, amounts to a near-total ban on abortion in Texas.