A Texas judge ruled Friday that the the state cannot deny people access to abortion when facing dangerous pregnancy complications, including fatal fetal anomalies. But hours later, the state attorney general’s office appealed the decision to the Texas Supreme Court, blocking the temporary injunction from taking effect until that court has ruled.

The injunction would allow doctors to exercise their own medical judgment about when patients need abortions to protect their lives or health. Though the state’s three different abortion bans nominally allow abortions when a patient’s life is in danger, doctors and other medical providers had previously said the language was not clear enough for them to act until the pregnant person’s condition had worsened to the point they could soon die.

Separately, the ruling also found that Texas’ six-week abortion ban, known as Senate Bill 8 and enforced through private citizen lawsuits, violates the state constitution.

The state judge set a trial on the merits of the Texas abortion laws, scheduling that hearing for March 2024.

If enforced, the Texas injunction could have massive implications for people in the state who need abortions for wanted pregnancies that have become untenable. Texas is the largest state in the country to have banned almost all abortions. Still, the ruling would not affect the majority of people who seek abortions, who usually seek termination earlier on after discovering an unplanned pregnancy, and not because of physical complications.

Read the full article about abortion bans in Texas by Shefali Luthra at The 19th.