The US Supreme Court is considering a dramatic rollback of abortion rights, Associated Press reports.
On Monday, the Supreme Court announced that it would hear a case over a controversial 2018 Mississippi law that aims to ban the majority of abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy.
The law would restrict most women from obtaining an abortion before the fetus can survive outside of the womb.
Per AP, this case could potentially undermine the landmark abortion rights ruling in Roe v Wade. It was this ruling, made in 1973 and reaffirmed in 1992, that first brought about the constitutional right for a woman to get an abortion.
According to the outlet, the Mississippi law was blocked by lower courts as it contradicted a woman's right to obtain an abortion before the fetus can survive outside her womb.
As per existing Supreme Court precedent, states are not permitted to ban abortions before fetal viability, usually around 22 weeks or later, according to CNBC.
The law would allow limited exceptions to the 15-week ban including medical emergencies or "severe fetal abnormality". Medics who are found violating the law would face mandatory suspension or potentially have their medical license revoked.
Jackson Women's Health Organization, a Mississippi abortion clinic, is urging the Supreme Court not to take on the case.
Hillary Schneller, an attorney representing the clinic, wrote in a filing, per CNBC:
"In an unbroken line of decisions over the last fifty years, this Court has held that the Constitution guarantees each person the right to decide whether to continue a pre-viability pregnancy."
Schneller went on to say that the state's position was "based on a misunderstanding of the core principle of" previous Supreme Court decisions.
She wrote: "While the State has interests throughout pregnancy, 'before viability, the State's interests are not strong enough to support a prohibition of abortion'."
The late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who was in favor of abortion rights, passed away just before the court's new term started in October 2020. Her successor, Justice Amy Coney Barrett, is a fierce opponent of abortion rights.
The case, which will likely take place in the fall, will see the conservative-leaning court try to alter the status quo on women's abortion rights after almost 50 years of rulings on the topic.