Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey signed legislation last week that eliminates the state's previous 24-week gestational limit on abortion, expanding access to the procedure up to birth based on a physician's professional judgment.
The bill, named the Prioritizing Patient Access to Care Act, will take effect in less than 90 days. Massachusetts becomes the 10th state to permit abortion through all nine months of pregnancy without gestational restrictions.
What the Right Is Saying
Dr. Robin Pierucci, a neonatologist and co-chair of the American College of Pediatricians' Pro-Life Council, told Fox News Digital she could not 'reconcile' the new law, calling it 'very disturbing.'
Pierucci argued that even when prenatal screening identifies potential health conditions, parents may face irreversible decisions based on incomplete diagnostic information. 'We're making life and death decisions with so little information,' she said.
The physician also raised concerns about ethical contradictions facing doctors who work to save extremely premature infants born at the same gestational ages now covered by the expanded abortion access. At 24 weeks' gestation, a fetus has developed fingernails, eyelashes and brain activity, representing a significant milestone in fetal viability.
'If it was really about healthcare, then it would be about protecting both the mom and the baby,' Pierucci said. She advocated for perinatal palliative care as an alternative approach when infants face terminal diagnoses, describing it as compassionate support focused on comfort rather than termination.
Religious and anti-abortion organizations including the Catholic Medical Association have called the law a dangerous expansion that removes necessary protections for unborn children. The Family Research Council and Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America have pledged to make opposition to such laws a priority in upcoming elections.
What the Left Is Saying
Abortion rights advocates have praised the law as a necessary expansion of reproductive healthcare access. Supporters argue that decisions about pregnancy care should remain between patients and their medical providers, free from government interference.
Proponents point to the legislation's name as reflecting its intent: prioritizing patient access to comprehensive healthcare services. Reproductive health organizations have long argued that gestational limits can force women to travel out of state for care or delay necessary medical procedures while awaiting confirmatory testing results.
Advocacy groups including Planned Parenthood and NARAL Pro-Choice America have championed similar measures in other states, arguing that abortion restrictions disproportionately affect low-income women and women of color who may lack resources to travel for procedures.
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists has maintained that abortion is a medically necessary service and that professional medical judgment should guide patient care decisions rather than arbitrary gestational limits.
What the Numbers Show
According to data from the Guttmacher Institute, 10 states plus Washington D.C. currently permit abortion without gestational limits following Massachusetts' action.
The prior Massachusetts law restricted abortion after 24 weeks except in cases where the pregnancy endangered the woman's life or health, or when the fetus was incompatible with sustained life outside the womb.
National data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicates that fewer than 1% of all abortions in the United States occur after 21 weeks' gestation. Late-term procedures are typically performed due to severe fetal abnormalities or threats to maternal health.
Massachusetts joins states including Colorado, New Jersey, Oregon, Vermont and Washington in eliminating gestational limits on abortion access.
The Bottom Line
The Massachusetts law represents a significant expansion of abortion rights in a state already considered among the most permissive for reproductive healthcare in the country. It takes effect approximately 90 days after signing, allowing time for implementation planning by medical providers.
Medical professionals like Dr. Pierucci have raised concerns about informed consent and potential pressure on parents facing prenatal diagnoses. Abortion rights advocates counter that patients deserve comprehensive information and options without government-mandated restrictions.
The legislation is likely to intensify ongoing national debates over abortion access following the Supreme Court's 2022 Dobbs decision, which returned regulation of the procedure to individual states. Similar bills are pending in several other Democratic-controlled state legislatures. Gov. Healey's office did not respond to requests for additional comment on the law.