This morning, the Supreme Court finally issued a ruling in the cases challenging Texas's near-total abortion ban, S.B. 8. Once again, a majority of the court has betrayed the people of Texas — and the harm to pregnant people, abortion providers, and the fundamental rights of all people continues. Today's court ruling allows S.B. 8 to remain in effect, denying patients access to abortion and encouraging other states to enact similar bans.

We are in a state of emergency. Planned Parenthood will continue to stand by all patients and fight against this law with our partners — no matter how long it takes. Here's what you need to know about this case and the state of abortion rights today:

S.B. 8 bans abortion at around six weeks of pregnancy, in clear violation of the rights protected by Roe. To circumvent court review, Texas incentivizes private citizens to enforce the law through a bounty-hunter scheme. That means that anyone can sue someone — including doctors, family members, taxi drivers, or anyone else — for helping someone obtain an abortion in Texas.

While the court did not put a complete end to the legal challenge brought by Planned Parenthood, other abortion providers, and other partners, its failure to block S.B. 8 makes it complicit in the chaos and harm to Texans. With today's ruling, the court has given the green light to other states to magnify that harm by passing copycat laws. We've already seen similar bans introduced in states like Florida and Ohio.

We will not give up, and we will never turn our back on patients in Texas or anywhere else. But as the legal fights continue, the ban remains in place. That means Texans remain blocked from accessing abortion, with no end in sight.

The few who can afford it are forced to travel out of state to get the care they need, but that is no solution. A right that is only available to the privileged is injustice. A right that can be taken away at the whim of a politician is an empty promise. And any right that this Supreme Court majority can disregard so callously is at risk of being extinguished.

As she has done time and again, Justice Sonia Sotomayor clearly expressed just how radical and dangerous this Supreme Court majority ruling truly is. As she said, the Supreme Court today "betray[ed] not only the citizens of Texas, but also our constitutional system of government." "The Court should have put an end to this madness months ago, before S.B. 8 first went into effect. It failed to do so then, and it fails again today."

We will continue to do all we can to restore abortion access in Texas, and to protect reproductive rights nationwide. With the Supreme Court also considering a Mississippi abortion ban, we may be only months away from a rulilng that overturns or unravels Roe v. Wade.

We will need you with us: stay informed, stay active, and stay ready for what comes next.