Texas Supreme Court justices had their turn to debate a pre-enforcement challenge to the Texas Heartbeat Act of 2021 during Thursday's oral arguments.

The plaintiffs are a group of abortion providers represented by Marc Hearron of the Center for Reproductive Rights in Washington, D.C. They argue that while Texas Senate Bill 8 (S.B. 8) precludes direct enforcement against abortion providers alleged to have performed an abortion after a heartbeat in the fetus was detected, it remains possible for state agencies to bring indirect enforcement.