• The Missouri Supreme Court has reinstated the state's abortion ban, overturning lower court rulings.
• Judge Jerri Zhang's previous decisions allowing abortions to resume were deemed inconsistent with state standards.
• Planned Parenthood has halted abortion services following the court's ruling, affecting women seeking care.
• Republican lawmakers are pursuing measures to further restrict abortion rights in Missouri.
• Advocates describe the ruling as a significant setback for reproductive rights, despite voter-approved amendments.

The Missouri Supreme Court has reinstated the state's strict abortion ban after overturning two lower court rulings that temporarily allowed abortions to resume. The court determined that District Judge Jerri Zhang had applied the wrong legal standards in her rulings that facilitated the resumption of abortion services following their suspension after the U.S. Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade in 2022, according to Reuters and CBS News.

As a result of this ruling, nearly all abortions are once again halted in Missouri. The Supreme Court mandated that Judge Zhang re-evaluate her previous rulings, emphasizing the need to consider potential harms from allowing abortions to continue. This decision has drawn significant criticism from reproductive rights advocates who argue it undermines a constitutional amendment passed by voters last November that guarantees a right to abortion until approximately 24 weeks of pregnancy, according to The Hill and HuffPost.

Planned Parenthood, which is the only provider of abortion services in Missouri, immediately canceled scheduled appointments following the Supreme Court's ruling. Their President and CEO, Emily Wales, expressed frustration over the setbacks caused by "political interference" and restrictive measures imposed by the state, highlighting the emotional toll on patients seeking care. Despite this, Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey praised the decision as a "win for women and children," advocating for the enforcement of state laws concerning safety and sanitary regulations for abortion services, according to CBS News and Reuters.

The court's ruling is part of an ongoing political struggle over abortion rights in Missouri, where state Republicans are actively pursuing further legal measures to potentially restrict abortion access, including a proposed ballot initiative that could be presented to voters as early as November 2026. This ongoing legal and political battle underscores the complexities surrounding abortion rights in the state, especially following the voter-led amendment to protect those rights last year, according to The Hill and HuffPost.