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Rights & Freedoms · Report · File No. 261112-542

Massachusetts abortion law takes effect as Healey blocks bid to suspend it until 2028

Gov. Maura Healey used an emergency order to put Massachusetts's new abortion law into effect right away. The law ends the state's 24-week limit. Opponents can no longer freeze the law while their repeal effort moves ahead, but voters may still decide its fate in 2028.

By the National Desk · · 4 min read

Every quote in this story (4) was matched word for word against its source. How we work

My clippings
Maura Healey
Maura Healey. Photo: Governors office, Public domain

Massachusetts now has one of the most expansive abortion laws in the country. Gov. Maura Healey, a Democrat, used an emergency order on Friday, Nov. 6, to put the law into effect right away. That move stopped opponents from suspending it until voters could weigh in 24.

The law is called "An Act prioritizing patient access to care." It ends the state's 24-week limit and leaves the decision to the treating physician's professional judgment and the patient's choice 1. With it, Massachusetts joins nine other states and Washington, D.C., in having no gestational limit on abortion. A gestational limit is a cutoff based on how far along a pregnancy is 13.

On Nov. 11, Healey defended her decision against criticism from Catholic leaders and some Democrats. She said the repeal effort against the law will still reach the ballot 3.

Maura Healey
I wanted to make sure that I was taking the steps necessary to make sure that women and couples have access to the health care that they need.
Maura Healey, Governor of Massachusetts, D-Mass.3

What the law changes

Before this law, abortion in Massachusetts was restricted from 24 weeks of pregnancy onward. The exceptions were if the patient's health or life was at risk, or if the fetus had a "grave" or "lethal" diagnosis 4. The new law removes the four criteria that had allowed abortions at or after 24 weeks, and it defers to doctors' medical judgment 2.

From Channel GOPMaura Healey wins reelection in MassachusettsMaura Healey · 140 plays · captioned, with the source named

State Rep. Lindsay Sabadosa, a Northampton Democrat and an original co-sponsor, said the old exceptions led hospitals to make cautious decisions to avoid legal liability 1. Abortions this late are uncommon. Federal data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) show that in 2022, 1.1% of abortions took place at or after 21 weeks 1.

Kate Dineen grew up in West Springfield and lives in Boston. In 2021, she learned 33 weeks into a wanted pregnancy that her son had a brain condition. A fetal MRI showed a stroke that could cause death before birth or serious lifelong problems 1. Her hospital told her over Zoom that she "may still be able to explore termination if [she's] able to travel." She later went to a clinic in Bethesda, Maryland, and then worked with lawmakers to change the law 1.

Why the governor called it an emergency

The Massachusetts House passed the bill 119 to 33 on July 22. The state Senate approved it by voice vote on July 31, so senators' individual votes were not recorded 5. Healey signed it on Aug. 10 35. It was due to take effect Nov. 9 27.

In the meantime, a group called the Compassionate Care Coalition gathered signatures. The group is led by Massachusetts Citizens for Life and Massachusetts Family Action. On Nov. 6, it said it had submitted 113,477 signatures certified by local clerks 2. That is well above the 37,289 needed to put a repeal question on the 2028 ballot. It is also above the 49,719 needed to suspend the law until that vote 25.

Without Healey's emergency order, the law would have been blocked until voters decided 4. Healey wrote that "at least nine patients" had been denied abortion care since she signed the law in August. She said "two more years of women being denied care" was not acceptable to her 2.

Maura Healey
The repeal campaign can continue its work, and Massachusetts voters will have their say.
Maura Healey, Governor of Massachusetts, D-Mass.2

Abortion opponents called the move undemocratic. Sam Miele chairs the repeal coalition. He told Healey that she was "less of a governor and more of a despot" 4.

Maura Healey, you must explain to the voters why that is an emergency
Sam Miele, Chair, Compassionate Care Coalition4

In a written statement, Boston Archbishop Richard Henning and the bishops of Worcester, Fall River and Springfield disputed that abortion can be considered health care. They also rejected that "there is an emergency requiring the further expansion of the existing and already radically permissive law" 3.

Not every Democrat backed the bill. State Rep. Chris Markey of Bristol County was one of nine Democrats who voted no. He told Fox News Digital, "This bill creates a very slippery slope" 3.

Voters still get the last word

Healey's order does not cancel the repeal campaign. Secretary of State William Galvin's office still has to review the signatures, which takes one to two weeks, according to his spokesperson 1. If enough are certified, voters would most likely decide in 2028 whether to keep the law 4.

Healey has done this before. Two years ago, she used the same emergency power after opponents of a new gun law gathered signatures for a referendum. On Nov. 3, more than two-thirds of voters upheld that gun law 4.

Republican Mike Minogue, Healey's opponent for governor this fall, is openly anti-abortion because of his Catholic faith. He had said he would "uphold the law" on reproductive rights if elected 5. In September, he said he wanted the public to settle the question 5.

I would much rather see the people of Massachusetts voice their opinion and decide this – not the politicians
Mike Minogue, Republican nominee for Massachusetts governor, 20265

Voters had their say on the governor's race first. Minogue got 34.7% of the vote with more than 90% of precincts reporting, and Healey won a second term 6.

That matters because it shows the shape of the fight now. Republicans in Washington control Congress and the White House. Meanwhile, Democratic-led states like Massachusetts are going further to protect abortion access. Opponents are turning to the ballot box, where abortion-rights supporters have done well.

The Record

  1. Massachusetts House passes the abortion access bill, 119-33; the Senate follows by voice vote on July 31 5.
  2. Gov. Maura Healey signs the Prioritizing Patient Access to Care Act 35.
  3. Healey wins a second term, defeating Republican Mike Minogue 6.
  4. Repeal backers submit 113,477 certified signatures; Healey signs an emergency preamble putting the law into effect immediately 2.
  5. Healey defends the emergency move amid criticism from Catholic bishops and some Democrats 3.
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Sources

  1. Daily Hampshire Gazette, “Massachusetts abortion expansion takes effect, removing all gestational limits” (2026-11-10). gazettenet.com/2026/11/10/massachusetts-abortion-expansion-t
  2. WBUR (State House News Service), “Gov. Healey takes emergency action to block effort to suspend abortion law” (2026-11-06). wbur.org/news/2026/11/06/maura-healey-abortion-law-emergency
  3. Boston Herald (via Hanford Sentinel), “Gov. Healey defends abortion bill emergency declaration amid criticism from Massachusetts Catholics, Democrats” (2026-11-11). hanfordsentinel.com/news/national/gov-healey-defends-abortio
  4. GBH News, “Healey takes emergency action to implement new Mass. abortion law” (2026-11-06). wgbh.org/news/politics/2026-11-06/healey-takes-emergency-act
  5. CommonWealth Beacon (State House News Service), “Opponents of new abortion law eye 2028 repeal effort” (2026-09-07). commonwealthbeacon.org/health-care/opponents-of-new-abortion
  6. WBUR, “Massachusetts election takeaways: Healey, Minogue and ballot questions” (2026-11-05). wbur.org/news/2026/11/05/massachusetts-election-takeaways-he
  7. Gloucester Daily Times (State House News Service), “Healey's emergency declaration blocks bid to suspend abortion law” (2026-11-09). gloucestertimes.com/news/state_news/healeys-emergency-declar

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