State Legal Snapshot
Abortion law, status, and enforcement — one-page reference
Abortion is a fundamental right under the Massachusetts state constitution and is legal for any reason up to 24 weeks post-implantation, with broad exceptions afterward.
Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 112, § 12L · Moe v. Sec'y of Admin. & Fin., 382 Mass. 629 (1981)
Massachusetts law contains a meaningful internal tension between its abortion-rights framework and its fetal-homicide jurisprudence. The same Supreme Judicial Court that recognized a fundamental state constitutional right to abortion in Moe v. Secretary of Administration and Finance (1981) also held, in Commonwealth v. Cass (1984) and Commonwealth v. Lawrence (1989), that a viable fetus is a 'person' for purposes of vehicular homicide and involuntary manslaughter. The wrongful death cases (Mone, Thibert) similarly treat a viable fetus as a person whose death is compensable.
Commonwealth v. Cass, 392 Mass. 799, 467 N.E.2d 1324 (1984) · Commonwealth v. Lawrence, 404 Mass. 378, 536 N.E.2d 571 (1989) · Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 112, § 12K
Minors under 16 must obtain consent from one parent or guardian, or obtain judicial bypass; minors 16 and older can consent on their own.
Massachusetts has no statute requiring spousal consent, spousal notice, or paternal consent for abortion; any such requirement would be unconstitutional under binding precedent.
| Actor | Offense | Penalty |
|---|---|---|
| Physician or provider performing abortion outside statutory limits | Professional misconduct; no criminal offense exists under current law | Potential license discipline (suspension, revocation, reprimand, fine) by the Board of Registration in Medicine; no criminal penalty. Shield Law limits disciplinary action for lawful reproductive health care. |
| Pregnant person obtaining or self-managing abortion | None; no criminal offense exists | None. Old criminal ban (G.L. c. 272, § 19) was repealed in 2018. Current abortion statutes do not regulate the pregnant person. |
| Physician assistant, nurse practitioner, nurse midwife | Same as physician; no criminal offense | Potential license discipline from respective licensing board, limited by Shield Law; no criminal penalty |
| Pharmacist dispensing abortion medication | No criminal offense; Shield Law protects against discipline | No penalty for dispensing lawful medication; Shield Law 2.0 (St. 2025, c. 16) protects against out-of-state actions and data collection |
| Any person aiding or assisting (driver, funder, counselor, friend) | None; no criminal offense exists; Shield Law affirmatively protects aiders | None under Massachusetts law. Shield Law provides cause of action against those who bring 'abusive litigation' related to legally protected health care activity. |
H.5595 — Prioritizing Patient Access to Care Act
Legislation · Passed House 119-33 on July 22, 2026; pending in Senate as of July 28, 2026 with legislative session ending July 31, 2026.
Would remove the current four enumerated exceptions for post-24-week abortion (life, physical health, mental health, lethal or grave fetal diagnosis) and replace them with a general standard allowing a licensed physician to perform an abortion after 24 weeks based on their professional medical judgment.
H.1991 / S.1579 — Eliminating Barriers to Abortion Access for Young People
Legislation · Referred to committee; S.1579 discharged to Judiciary Committee December 2025; hearing held June 2025.
Would amend G.L. c. 112, §§ 12F and 12R to eliminate the parental consent requirement for minors under 16, removing the judicial bypass process. Minors of any age would be able to consent to abortion on their own.
Louisiana v. FDA, No. 26-30203 (5th Cir.) — federal mifepristone telehealth and pharmacy dispensing case
Litigation · On May 1, 2026, a Fifth Circuit panel stayed the FDA's 2023 authorizations permitting mifepristone to be dispensed via telehealth and through retail pharmacies, holding Louisiana was likely to succeed on its Administrative Procedure Act claim.
If the Fifth Circuit's stay is ultimately reinstated or Louisiana prevails on the merits, the FDA would be required to restore an in-person dispensing requirement for mifepristone nationwide.
The foundational state constitutional case: the SJC held that Article 10 of the Massachusetts Declaration of Rights protects the right to abortion, including a right to state Medicaid funding for medically necessary abortions.
The current operative abortion statute: codifies the right to abortion, authorizes multiple clinician types, sets the 24-week framework with post-24-week exceptions, eliminates the waiting period, and contains no criminal penalties.
The first-in-the-nation shield law protecting providers, patients, and helpers from out-of-state investigations, subpoenas, extradition, and abusive litigation related to lawful reproductive health care.
Strengthened shield protections by prohibiting collection of individually identifiable abortion data, extending non-cooperation mandates, and protecting provider privacy in prescribing.
Requires all fully insured health plans in Massachusetts, including MassHealth and ConnectorCare, to cover abortion and abortion-related care without cost-sharing.
Generated from the structured legal focused deep-research record for MA (research completed 2026-07-28). This snapshot condenses a much larger sourced dataset — full citations, quoted statutory text, and plain-language explanations are in the full Massachusetts survey. This document has not been reviewed by a lawyer and should not be used as legal advice.