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 The decision is a major milestone in the fight over abortion, as
opponents have sought for decades to roll back access to the
procedure.
By a 5-4 vote, the justices denied an emergency request by abortion
and women's health providers for an injunction on enforcement of the
ban, which took effect early on Wednesday, while litigation
continues.
One of the court's six conservatives, Chief Justice John Roberts,
joined its three liberals in dissent.
"The court’s order is stunning," liberal Justice Sonia Sotomayor
wrote in a dissenting opinion.
"Presented with an application to enjoin a flagrantly
unconstitutional law engineered to prohibit women from exercising
their constitutional rights and evade judicial scrutiny, a majority
of justices have opted to bury their heads in the sand."
In an unsigned explanation, the court's majority said the decision
was "not based on any conclusion about the constitutionality of
Texas’s law" and allowed legal challenges to proceed.
The decision illustrates the impact of former Republican President
Donald Trump's three conservative appointees, who have tilted the
court further right. All were in the majority.
The law would amount to a near-total ban on the procedure in Texas,
as 85% to 90% of abortions are obtained after six weeks of
pregnancy, and would probably force many clinics to close, abortion
rights groups said.
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 Such a ban has never been
permitted in any state since the Supreme Court
decided Roe v. Wade, the landmark ruling that
legalized abortion nationwide, in 1973.
Texas is among a dozen mostly Republican-led
states to ban the procedure once a fetal
heartbeat can be detected, often at six weeks
and sometimes before a woman realizes she is
pregnant.
Courts have blocked such bans, citing Roe v.
Wade.
The court's action over the Texas ban could
foreshadow its approach in another case over a
15-week ban by Mississippi in which the state
has asked the justices to overturn Roe v. Wade.
The court will hear arguments in the term
beginning in October, with a ruling due by the
end of June 2022.
(Reporting by Lawrence Hurley; Editing by Gerry
Doyle and Clarence Fernandez)
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