Massachusetts lawmakers have approved legislation that would replace the state’s existing restrictions on abortions after 24 weeks with a standard based on a physician’s professional judgment.
The Massachusetts House passed the Prioritizing Patients’ Access to Care Act, or Bill H.5595, by a 119-33 vote on July 22.
The Senate approved the measure July 31, sending it to Gov. Maura Healey (D) for her signature. Healey’s office did not respond to requests for comment before the reports were published.
Massachusetts law currently limits abortions after 24 weeks to certain circumstances, including serious risks to the patient’s life or physical or mental health, fatal fetal conditions, and cases in which survival after birth would require extraordinary medical intervention.
The new legislation would remove those specific statutory restrictions and permit later abortions based on the professional judgment of the physician providing the care, EWTN News reported.
Supporters said the legislation is intended to address medically complex pregnancies and prevent Massachusetts patients from having to travel to other states for care.
State Rep. Lindsay Sabadosa (D), a sponsor of the bill, said medical decisions should be made by patients and their physicians rather than lawmakers, according to The Center Square.
She said the measure would allow doctors to provide care based on their medical judgment and the circumstances of individual patients.
Sen. Robyn Kennedy (D), another supporter of the legislation, said the measure would expand access to reproductive care and allow patients to receive treatment within Massachusetts.
Senate President Karen Spilka said patients facing difficult medical decisions should be able to receive care from physicians they know and trust without leaving the state.
Medical organizations supporting the bill said later-stage pregnancies can involve serious and complicated medical circumstances.
Dr. Luu Ireland, chief medical officer of the Planned Parenthood League of Massachusetts, said pregnancy experiences differ and that decisions about whether to continue or end a pregnancy should be made by patients and physicians, according to MassLive.
Reproductive Equity Now said the 24-week restriction had forced dozens of patients each year to travel outside Massachusetts for care after receiving serious medical diagnoses.
Supporters have argued that the existing exceptions do not account for every medical circumstance that may arise later in pregnancy.
Opponents said the legislation would eliminate safeguards governing abortions after 24 weeks and make Massachusetts one of the nation’s least restrictive states on later-pregnancy abortions.
Kelsey Pritchard, communications director for Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, told The Center Square that the legislation would allow abortion throughout pregnancy based on the judgment of the physician performing the procedure.
SBA Pro-Life America President Marjorie Dannenfelser also criticized the legislation and called for federal protections for unborn children.
Massachusetts’ Catholic bishops described the proposed removal of legal restrictions on later abortions as a radical and morally objectionable measure and urged Catholics to pray for greater respect for human life.
Republican state Rep. Kelly Pease questioned both the bill’s scope and the speed with which it moved through the Legislature.
He said he was concerned that the proposal would remove protections involving pregnancies in which a fetus may be capable of surviving outside the womb, according to Fox News.
If Healey signs the measure, Massachusetts would join several states and the District of Columbia that allow abortions later in pregnancy without the specific statutory restrictions currently contained in Massachusetts law.
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