The Supreme Court agreed to hear a case challenging a Texas law passed in 2013 that would set specific requirements on abortion clinics in the state.
The New York Times reported that the Supreme Court announced its decision Friday. The case will be the first major abortion argument the court has heard in nearly a decade.
The case, brought by a group of abortion providers, challenges two parts of a state law passed by the Texas legislature and signed into law by Gov. Rick Perry (R) in July 2013 that would set requirements on abortion clinics.
Specifically, the law requires clinics to meet building, equipment, staffing, and other standards that are in place for "ambulatory surgical centers." It also mandates abortion doctors to possess admitting privileges to a hospital nearby.
The law would reduce the number of abortion clinics in Texas from more than 40 to about 10, according to the abortion providers challenging the law.
The challengers also argued in their brief that the law "would delay or prevent thousands of women from obtaining abortions and lead some to resort to unsafe or illegal methods of ending an unwanted pregnancy."
The Supreme Court’s announcement comes months after a federal appeals court in June upheld the law and denied the challengers a stay. The Supreme Court later blocked that ruling.
The Supreme Court has not taken up a major abortion case since 2007.