AUSTIN—Protests both for and against the Texas abortion law known as House Bill 2 didn’t just take place in Washington on Wednesday.

Activists gathered in Austin to call on the Supreme Court to stop politicians from restricting access to abortion.

"In Texas, every year, hundreds of women have to be taken to hospitals because of complications of abortion and there have been cases where women have died,” said David Walls, of Texas Values.

It's just one of the reasons HB2 supporters say the law is needed. Under it, physicians who perform abortions must obtain admitting privileges at local hospitals. The law also requires abortion facilities to operate as hospital-like ambulatory surgical centers.

"When the latest restrictions went into place, our health center in Waco was no longer able to provide abortion services because we were unable to partner with either of the two hospitals in the community,” explained Sarah Wheat, of Planned Parenthood of Greater Texas.

Experts predict if the law is upheld, only five out of Texas' 254 counties will have abortion clinics. Texans living south and west of San Antonio would be left with no options close to home.

"There will be no clinic in a 600 mile span between El Paso and Fort Worth,” said Trisha Trigilio, an attorney with ACLU of Texas.

Supporters, however, believe clinics should be able to comply with HB2's restrictions. They say the requirements are simple, common sense ways to protect women's health.

"Any clinic that decides to shut down as a result of this is not doing so because of the law, they're just making a business decision that, unfortunately, they don't believe these women need these health and safety standards,” said Walls.

Both sides are hopeful the oral arguments the Supreme Court heard Wednesday morning will persuade them.

"It's completely within the right of the states to regulate abortion in a way that the highest health and safety standards can be met,” said Walls.

"Here we are in 2016 in a situation that I never thought that we would be in and that's why I think this decision is so important, we can't go back to where we were,” said Barbara Hines, a women’s rights activist.

It is a battle that dates back to Roe v. Wade, some four decades worth of back and forth with Texas long at the center of the debate.