Ruling Temporarily Blocking Tennessee’s Abortion Ban Means Doctors Can Treat Patients Facing Dangerous Pregnancy Complications

Because of a court ruling temporarily blocking Tennessee’s abortion ban for dangerous pregnancy complications and lethal fetal diagnoses, doctors will now be able to provide abortion care to their patients facing those conditions without fear of disciplinary action.

The ruling, issued October 17, came in Blackmon v. State of Tennessee, a case brought by the Center for Reproductive Rights on behalf of seven Tennessee women denied abortion care and two physicians. The lawsuit sought to clarify medical exceptions under the state’s near-total abortion ban.

In its ruling, the court:

• Stated that the ban’s exceptions are vague and confusing;
• Outlined specific conditions under which abortion care is permitted under the state’s ban; and
• Held that the Center would likely succeed on its constitutional claims, which include that the ban violates pregnant patients’ right to life and equal protection under the law and is unconstitutionally vague.

“The Court agreed with us that the medical exception in the ban is not clear and has not been working. This ruling is a win for pregnant patients in Tennessee and is vindication for the brave women in this case, who were denied or delayed in getting medically necessary abortions,” said Linda Goldstein, senior counsel at the Center. “Our hope is that the court’s clarification of Tennessee’s abortion ban will encourage Tennessee physicians to return to performing the essential health care they’ve been trained to provide.” 

The specific circumstances outlined by the court that would fall under the ban’s medical exceptions include:

• Pre-viability preterm premature rupture of membranes (PPROM);
• Dilation of the cervix prior to viability of the pregnancy; and
• Fatal fetal diagnoses that lead to maternal health conditions such as severe preeclampsia or infection that would result in uterine rupture or potential loss of fertility.

Case Challenges Abortion Ban’s Medical Exceptions

Blackmon v. State of Tennessee, filed by the Center in September 2023, challenges the medical necessity exception to Tennessee’s total abortion ban. Such clarification would confirm that physicians can provide abortion care when medically necessary to preserve a patient’s life or health without waiting for patients to be acutely ill. The lawsuit also seeks to confirm that the law’s exception permits abortion for cases of fatal fetal diagnoses that pose a risk to the pregnant patient’s life or health. 

Among the plaintiffs in the case:

• The seven women denied abortion care faced serious pregnancy complications that put their health, lives and future fertility at risk and were forced to either remain pregnant or travel out of state to obtain care.
• The two physicians joined the lawsuit because the state’s abortion ban impedes their ability to offer their patients the nationally recognized standard of care in obstetric emergencies and threatens them with imprisonment when they provide such care in good faith.  

The lead plaintiff in the case, Nicole Blackmon, who was forced to remain pregnant against her will and gave birth to a stillborn baby, was dismissed from the case by the court in its ruling yesterday. Since she underwent a tubal ligation after that traumatic experience, according to the court, she had “forgone the ability to become pregnant again.”  

Commenting on the ruling, Blackmon said, “I’m thrilled that the court not only heard us, but truly listened. While it is bittersweet for me personally, the decision we received is sure to save so many others the grief that my fellow plaintiffs and I were forced to endure.”  

Read more about Blackmon v. State of Tennessee here.

• Medical Exceptions to State Abortion Bans: The Center is representing dozens of patients denied abortion care, and physicians, in several states that have banned abortion. Learn more about the cases.