Abortion providers in Texas are asking the Supreme Court to prevent enforcement of a state law that would allow private citizens to sue anyone for helping a woman get an abortion after about six weeks of pregnancy.
The request to the court comes after a panel of appellate judges refused to block enforcement of the law before it takes effect on Wednesday.
If it goes into effect, the law would rule out 85% of abortions in Texas and force many clinics to close, the providers and abortion rights advocates supporting them said in an emergency filing with the high court on Monday.
At least 12 other states have enacted bans on abortion early in pregnancy, but all have been blocked from going into effect.
The Texas law, signed by Gov. Greg Abbott in May, would ban abortion in the nation’s second-biggest state after a fetal heartbeat is detected, which can be as early as six weeks of pregnancy and is before many women even know they are pregnant.
