Massachusetts is poised to dramatically expand access to abortions up to 24 weeks of pregnancy as Democrat lawmakers race to pass the Prioritizing Patients' Access to Care Act before the legislative session ends Friday. The bill passed the state House 119-33 last week and is now on a fast track through the Senate.
The legislation marks the latest effort by Democratic-led states to expand abortion protections after the Supreme Court's 2022 Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization decision returned abortion policy to the states. If enacted, Massachusetts would join Maine in allowing late-term abortions based on physician judgment rather than statutory exceptions.
What the Right Is Saying
Opponents contend the bill would make Massachusetts one of the nation's least restrictive states for late-term abortions and remove existing safeguards. They argue current law already includes broad exceptions that go further than many other states.
Kelsey Pritchard, communications director at Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, told Fox News Digital that existing Massachusetts law allows abortion up to 24 weeks with health, life, and fetal anomaly exceptions. "It even has exceptions that allow for so-called fetal anomaly abortion, so if the baby has a life-limiting diagnosis, if the baby has a disability diagnosis, already in Massachusetts you can abort those babies seemingly at any point," Pritchard said.
Pritchard criticized the legislative process, saying Democratic leaders moved quickly to pass the measure before lawmakers adjourned. "There's really no justification for them to make their law this extreme," she said. "It's something that they've been doing in secret."
Republican state Rep. Kelly Pease told WWLP he was caught off guard by the proposal. "I think most of our caucus was. It's like, where did this come from?" Pease said. "I don't see how I'm going to be in favor of a bill that allows babies over six months to be terminated when they're probably viable outside the womb."
What the Left Is Saying
Supporters argue the bill removes barriers to medically necessary care that currently exist under state law. Under existing statute, abortions after 24 weeks are limited to four specific circumstances: protecting the patient's life, physical health, mental health, or cases involving a lethal fetal anomaly or grave fetal diagnosis.
Bill sponsor Rep. Lindsay N. Sabadosa, D-Northampton, said in a statement that medical decisions should be made by patients and their doctors. "Massachusetts has one of the best health care systems in the country, and patients should be able to rely on their providers to deliver medically appropriate care without restrictions that can fail to account for the complexity of individual medical circumstances," Sabadosa said.
Claire Teylouni, interim co-executive director of Reproductive Equity Now, told The New York Times about a 2021 case in which a woman had to leave Massachusetts for an abortion after her fetus suffered a stroke at 33 weeks because providers did not believe the case fit within existing legal exceptions. "Providers say they want to be able to use their professional expertise to make decisions — that's how we treat almost every other area of health care," Teylouni said.
What the Numbers Show
The House vote on the bill was 119-33, with significant bipartisan opposition. The current Massachusetts law abortions after 24 weeks to four specific circumstances: life preservation, physical health, mental health, and lethal fetal anomaly or grave diagnosis.
Maine enacted similar legislation in 2023 that allows late-term abortions based on physician judgment, serving as a model for the Massachusetts proposal. Nationally, states have taken divergent approaches since the Dobbs decision returned abortion policy to individual states in June 2022.
The Bottom Line
Massachusetts is expected to pass the bill before its legislative session ends Friday, positioning the state among the most permissive for late-term abortions in the country. The legislation would remove current legal requirements that limit post-24-week procedures to specific statutory exceptions, instead allowing licensed physicians to determine medical appropriateness.
The fast-tracked process has drawn criticism from abortion opponents who say it lacks transparency and public debate. What happens next includes a Senate vote, which is expected before July 31, followed by action from Democratic Gov. Maura Healey, who has indicated support for expanded abortion access.