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Massachusetts residents seeking reproductive care later in pregnancy may no longer need to travel out of state under a bill passed Wednesday by the state House of Representatives.
The legislation updates state laws allowing licensed physicians to determine when an abortion after 24 weeks is medically necessary, without being restricted to specific legal categories.
The bill passed 119-33 and now heads to the state Senate for consideration, state House Speaker Ronald J. Mariano’s, D-3rd Norfolk, office said in a statement.
Under current law, abortions at or after 24 weeks are limited to four specific situations: protecting the patient’s life or physical or mental health, or cases involving a fatal or severe fetal condition.
Because of existing legal boundaries, “dozens” of patients each year are forced to leave Massachusetts to obtain abortions later in pregnancy, Reproductive Equity Now said in a statement.
The organization told MassLive that Massachusetts providers and clinics have reported to them that they deny care to at least one patient post-24 weeks per month.
Mariano, of Quincy, said the reforms ensure the state remains a national leader in protecting access to reproductive health care.
“This legislation is about ensuring that in Massachusetts, reproductive health care decisions are made exclusively by the patient and her doctor — unencumbered by a legal framework that, in practice, isn’t always capable of accounting for the complexity and uncertainty inherent to pregnancy-related health care,” he said. “These reforms will ensure that Massachusetts remains steadfast in our commitment to protecting a woman’s right to choose.”
Building on protections enacted in 2022 and expanded in 2025, the new legislation prohibits insurance companies or other outside entities from overriding treatment decisions made jointly by a patient and their doctor.
The bill also expands where patients can receive care, permitting physicians to perform these procedures at health care treatment centers instead of only in hospitals.
Other legislative leaders echoed the commitment to keeping individual health care decisions in the hands of medical professionals.
“By centering these conversations between an individual and a physician, we will ensure every patient gets the care they need without unnecessary obstacles,” House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Aaron Michlewitz, D-3rd Suffolk, said in a statement. “We will not hesitate to act to protect reproductive rights and to ensure that our providers and patients are protected from being prevented from offering this critical form of healthcare.”
The bill’s co-sponsor, Rep. Lindsay N. Sabadosa, D-1st Hampshire, agreed that patients shouldn’t face logistical obstacles when seeking critical treatment.
“The goal of passing this legislation is simple. Medical decisions should be made by a patient and their doctor,” Sabadosa, of Northampton, said in a statement.
“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,” she said.
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