The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday blocked Louisiana from enforcing a law that women's groups said would leave only a single doctor legally allowed to perform abortions in the state.
By a 5-4 vote, the court said the restrictions must remain on hold while challengers appeal a lower court decision in favor of the law.
It was the Supreme Court's first significant action on the hot-button issue of abortion since President Donald Trump's nominee, Brett Kavanaugh, replaced Anthony Kennedy, who generally voted with the court's liberals to uphold abortion rights, NBC News reported.
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The vote was not a ruling on the legal merits of the Louisiana restriction, but the decision to keep the law on hold signals that a majority of the justices have doubts about its constitutionality.