Supreme Court Strikes Down Texas Abortion Law: Tell Us What You Think

• Reporting by Alex Wukman and Alison Bauter, Patch Staff

In a landmark ruling for abortion access cheered by Massachusetts legislators, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a Texas abortion law Monday that would have shuttered three quarters of the state's clinics.

The ruling is considered a major win for abortion rights advocates, and received the Internet equivalent of a standing ovation from Massachusetts legislators minutes after news broke:

The eight-justice court voted 5-3 to invalidate the state's 2013 law that said any clinics providing abortion must meet the same standards as surgical centers, some of the strictest standards of care in the United States.

At issue was whether the restrictions put an "undue burden" on a woman's constitutional right to terminate her pregnancy before the fetus attains viability.

Writing for the majority, Justice Stephen Breyer wrote that the provisions in the Texas law "vastly increase the obstacles confronting women seeking abortions in Texas without providing any benefit to women’s health capable of withstanding any meaningful scrutiny."

Opponents of the law said women in Texas already have a tough time getting abortions because the number of clinics has been drastically reduced; should the law be upheld, they said, Texas could be left with only nine functioning abortion clinics for a state with 13.5 million women and girls.

Read the full story as it develops here.

Tell Patch What You Think: Did the Supreme Court make the right decision? Tell us in the comments below or on Facebook.