BACK AND FORTH

Judge Blocks Florida’s 15-Week Abortion Ban—but It Won’t Last Long

After saying he would block the state’s 15-week abortion ban last week, a Florida judge has followed through by signing the temporary injunction Tuesday.

Florida Judge John C. Cooper temporarily blocked the state’s 15-week abortion ban on Tuesday, ABC Action News reports. Pregnant people can now get abortions for up to 24 weeks in the state, but the block isn’t expected to last long because Florida has already appealed the order. Soon after the U.S. Supreme Court ended constitutional abortion rights by overturning Roe v. Wade on June 24, Cooper signaled his intent to block Florida’s restrictive abortion ban, which allows exceptions for fetal abnormalities and saving the pregnant person’s life, but not for rape or incest. The Florida Supreme Court’s interpretation of a roughly 40-year-old constitutional amendment that guarantees a right to privacy to include abortions lies at the center of the state’s battle with abortion rights.