Seventh Judicial District Judge Dan Forgey halted enforcement of the Human Heartbeat Act while litigation over some of the provisions advances.
“The court finds that the plaintiffs have on this record made a sufficient showing of irreparable injury that justifies their request for temporary injunctive relief,” Forgey wrote on April 24.
Until the temporary injunction was issued, the Human Heartbeat Act required that before any abortion is performed, a health care provider had to determine if there was detectable fetal cardiac activity using standard medical practices and techniques.
The ruling stems from a lawsuit filed on March 31 by a coalition of plaintiffs, including Dr. Giovannina Anthony, Wellspring Health Access, and Chelsea’s Fund, against House Enrolled Act (HEA) 29, which was enacted into law by Gov. Mark Gordon last month.
The plaintiffs argued that it violates the Wyoming Constitution and creates irreparable harm to both health care providers and patients.
Alleged actual harm cited includes a ban on all abortion services across the state, abortion professionals now facing the risk of criminal prosecution, imprisonment, and loss of licensure, delayed care in situations where the law’s application may be vague, suspended telehealth services, cancelled appointments, and reduced number of patients.
“Telemedicine providers who normally lawfully provide medication abortion care or other telehealth pregnancy care in Wyoming cannot comply with the statutes,” the order states.
If the statutes had not been temporarily reversed by Forgey, medical professionals would have faced potential felony criminal charges for violations.
In January, the Wyoming Supreme Court reversed previous abortion limits because they allegedly violate the state constitution’s health care autonomy protections.
For nearly 50 years, Roe v. Wade, passed in 1973, prevented states from banning abortion; however, Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022 in the U.S. Supreme Court's Dobbs decision.
As a result, federal protection no longer exists, which enabled Wyoming lawmakers to approve the Human Heartbeat Act.
Since the U.S. Constitution can no longer be used to defend abortion, abortion rights are being asserted in state courts under state constitutions nationwide.