Supreme Court to consider Mississippi abortion law

The Supreme Court announced Monday it will take up Mississippi's appeal of a lower court ruling that struck down a ban on most abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy.

The announcement is being considered a victory for abortion opponents, according to NBC News. 

The state's 15-week abortion ban that was signed into law in 2018 by then-GOP Gov. Phil Bryant include exceptions only for medical emergencies or cases of "severe fetal abnormality" – but not for instances of rape or incest. A federal judge in Mississippi struck down the law, and the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld that ruling in December 2019, according to CNN. 

The high court will consider the case next term.

After being rescheduled for the court's consideration in conference over a dozen times, the case could present a direct challenge to Roe v. Wade, the 1973 landmark Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion nationwide prior to viability, which can occur at around 24 weeks of pregnancy, CNN also reports.