Contact: Troy Newman, President, 316-841-1700; Cheryl Sullenger, 316-516-3034, Senior Vice President; both with Operation Rescue; info.operationrescue@gmail.com  

WASHINGTON, Nov. 13, 2015 /Christian Newswire/ -- Today the United States Supreme Court has announced it will hear the first major pro-life case since 2007 when it takes up a case involving a 2013 Texas law, HB2, that requires abortion facilities to meet minimum health and safety standards and that abortionists maintain hospital privileges within 30 miles of their abortion facilities.

While the facility standards portion of the law had been blocked from enforcement, the hospital privilege requirement has been implemented across Texas. This has resulted in the closure of about half the state's abortion facilities, which caused abortions to decrease in Texas by an impressive 13 percent the ensuing 12 months.

"The Texas law is a matter of public safety. Our own investigations and research into Texas abortion facilities has shown uncovered abuses that show the need for them to be licensed, meet minimum standards, and for the abortion providers to hold local hospital privileges. If abortionists cannot qualify for hospital privileges, they are not qualified to conduct surgical abortions that sometimes place the lives of women in jeopardy," said Cheryl Sullenger, Senior Vice President of Operation Rescue. "We are excited that the Texas case will be heard by the Supreme Court next year and are optimistic that it will be upheld as Constitutional."

The challenge to the Texas safety law was made by Whole Women's Health, a chain of abortion clinics in Texas and three other states.

Operation Rescue discovered widespread abortion abuses in Texas during a 2011 investigation that resulted in heavy fines against two Whole Women's Health abortion facilities for the illegal dumping of recognizable aborted baby remains in a public dumpster.

In addition, Operation Rescue reported two Whole Women's Health abortionists, Alan H. Molson and Robert E. Hanson, for violations discovered during that same investigation, resulting in thousands of dollars in fines.

The case that the Supreme Court is taking up is Whole Woman's Health v. Cole, U.S. Supreme Court, No. 16-274.