Missouri's attempts to fend off Planned Parenthood's challenge to statewide abortion rules have reached the U.S. Supreme Court.

Attorney General Josh Hawley filed a brief with the Supreme Court on Thursday, almost a week after Planned Parenthood asked the high court to step in and allow the women's health organization to offer abortions at several clinics across Missouri, including in Springfield.

"Missouri’s flexible, commonsense regulations promote women’s health and safety, and I will vigorously defend them," Hawley said in a statement. "Today, my Office is doing exactly that in the United States Supreme Court."

Case background

Planned Parenthood organizations in Missouri have sued the state in federal court over two rules pertaining to abortion: one requiring abortion providers to be licensed as ambulatory surgical centers and another saying doctors who perform abortions must be licensed at nearby hospitals.

The case cites as precedent a Supreme Court ruling in 2016 in a Texas case in which justices struck down similar abortion restrictions. Missouri, through Hawley's office, has argued the rules are not substantially similar and said the restrictions are necessary to protect women's health.

A district judge's order to temporarily halt the rules from being enforced gave Planned Parenthood a victory earlier this year, and the organization started moving forward with plans to offer abortions in Springfield, Joplin, Kansas City and Columbia.

But on the state's appeal, another federal court halted the judge's order, stalling Planned Parenthood's abortion expansion plans in the process.

The appellate ruling did not stop the Kansas City clinic from offering abortions and does not prevent the St. Louis Planned Parenthood clinic from continuing to perform abortions. But it threw plans for the Springfield, Joplin and Columbia clinics into limbo.

Last week, Planned Parenthood went to the Supreme Court to ask justices to overrule the recent appellate court ruling. Its application for the high court to vacate the appellate court's temporary stay claimed Missouri's abortion rules placed "enormous burdens" on women seeking to terminate their pregnancies.

In the interim — while Hawley's office drafted a response — the appellate court was forced to clarify its previous ruling, noting that while its order still allowed abortion rules to be enforced, the ruling was only temporary until judges could meet "en banc," or all together at once.

Hawley contrasts Missouri, Texas

Hawley's response came Thursday in the form of a 45-page brief that notes the appellate court has not yet met en banc to rule on the initial order allowing the expansion to proceed. The state's reply also seeks to prove that Missouri's rules "differ critically" from the unconstitutional Texas regulations.

For one, Hawley's office argues, Missouri's Department of Health and Senior Services allows prospective abortion providers to seek waivers of the surgical-center requirement. The state says no waiver applications have ever been denied, citing a previous settlement through which facilities in Kansas City and Columbia obtained abortion licenses.

Texas and its regulations were "rigid" and "inflexible" by contrast, Missouri contends.

The state also says that Planned Parenthood's lawsuit was filed before the organization tried to work with regulators, while noting that Planned Parenthood has called the waiver process "futile."

"The Department received no communication from (Planned Parenthood) regarding those facilities in Springfield and Joplin, and (Planned Parenthood) submitted no application for licensure and no request for deviation relating to either the Springfield or Joplin facilities, before this lawsuit was filed," Missouri says in the brief.

The state claims Planned Parenthood and its arguments fail to meet several standards that would merit Supreme Court intervention.

Hawley's brief also opens the door for Planned Parenthood and the state to find a middle ground allowing the Springfield and Joplin clinics to bypass certain licensing requirements if Planned Parenthood engages in the waiver process.

What's next, and meanwhile

The Missouri case could be an early test for new Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch, who is conservative but has not ruled on abortion in his judicial career.

The Supreme Court in June assigned the U.S. Eighth Circuit, which includes Missouri, to Gorsuch. This gives Gorsuch the power to grant or reject applications for stays and injunctions emanating from Missouri.

If Gorsuch accepts Planned Parenthood's application and vacates the appellate court ruling, the organization would seem free to continue pursuing its abortion expansion. If not, Planned Parenthood could appeal to the Supreme Court.

It's unclear when the appellate court might convene in full to consider whether to allow Planned Parenthood to proceed or whether Hawley's office is making a strong enough argument.

Meanwhile, plans to inspect the Springfield Planned Parenthood clinic have been delayed since an application for an abortion license was filed in mid-May.

The News-Leader previously reported that an inspection at the Springfield clinic was scheduled for late August or early September. But September is nearly gone, and the inspection date has been pushed back to mid-October.

In a Sept. 12 email obtained by the News-Leader, an official with the state Department of Health and Senior Services cited "competing processes" near the close of the federal fiscal year, which ends Saturday, as a reason for delaying an inspection in Springfield.

Mary Kogut, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood of the St. Louis Region and Southwest Missouri, replied within an hour.

"We are disappointed in the delay to our inspection," Kogut wrote. "We hoped to have it next week, and have been prepared for your visit. Our desire is to provide expanded and necessary services to our patients and the community.

"We will hold the new dates and will ensure they work. If something changes on your end, and you can make next week, we would be ready for you on short notice."

Read more:

Planned Parenthood, in quest to offer abortions in Springfield, asks Supreme Court to help

Gov. Greitens urges anti-abortion action, asks Springfield crowd to pray for lawmakers

Planned Parenthood plans to offer abortions at clinics in Springfield and Joplin