Columbia, South Carolina - The South Carolina Supreme Court, composed entirely of men, on Wednesday upheld a ban on abortion care after six weeks – before most people even know they are pregnant.

"The legislature has made a policy determination that, at a certain point in the pregnancy, a woman's interest in autonomy and privacy doesn't outweigh the interest of the unborn child to live," Justice John Kittredge wrote in the decision.

The Supreme Court previously struck down a 2021 ban, known as the Fetal Heartbeat and Protection from Abortion Act, earlier this year, arguing that it violated the state constitution. The law had been blocked since 2021 but went into effect after the US Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.

South Carolina Republicans responded by passing another six-week abortion ban very similar to the 2021 legislation.

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"Both the 2021 Act and the 2023 Act – which bear the same name and ban abortion at exactly the same point in time – preclude many women from being able to exercise informed choice over their reproductive health decisions," Chief Justice Donald Beatty, the lone voice of dissent on Wednesday, wrote in his opinion.

Beatty's arguments weren't enough to win over his colleagues, whose reversal in course came after the state legislature replaced former Justice Kaye Hearn, who reached the mandatory retirement age in February. Her departure left the court without any female representation.

"Our doors remain open & we'll continue to provide abortion care under the severe restrictions of this law. We'll never stop fighting," Planned Parenthood posted in spite of the ruling.