Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey signed a law updating the state's rules on abortions after 24 weeks, allowing a physician's professional medical judgment to authorize the procedure. Previously, post-24-week abortions were already legal in four specific circumstances: to preserve the life or health of the pregnant person, or in cases of fetal defects incompatible with life outside the womb.
Viral posts claiming Massachusetts legalized 'abortion until birth' omit that the prior law already permitted late abortions under those conditions, and that the new law still requires a physician's judgment, not the pregnant person's decision alone. CDC data shows abortions after 21 weeks are rare, accounting for 1.1% of all terminations in 2022, with 96% occurring before 15 weeks.
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