Judge blocks Wyoming abortion pill ban, pending lawsuit

A Wyoming judge has temporarily blocked the state's ban on abortion pills, pending legal arguments.

The state is the only one to have specifically banned abortion pills, though numerous others have effectively done so by banning abortion almost entirely, the Associated Press reported. Wyoming law generally bans the procedure, though that law is also the subject of a judicial block from the same judge.

Teton County Judge Melissa Owens issued the Thursday decision forbidding the abortion pill ban from taking effect on July 1 as scheduled. The plaintiffs in the case are also challenging the state's abortion ban and Owens has consolidated the challenges into a single suit. Litigants include non-profits, obstetricians, and women in the state.

One factor in the case is a state constitutional amendment from 2012 establishing the right of state residents to make their own health care decisions. The plaintiffs have pointed to that amendment in challenging the abortion ban, though the state contends that their ban, which provides exceptions to save the life of the woman, rape, or incest, doesn't ran afoul of the amendment.

Ben Whedon is an editor and reporter for Just the News. Follow him on Twitter.