Overview
- Gov. Maura Healey filed an emergency preamble on Nov. 6 to activate Chapter 188 two days early so the law would not be paused while petition signatures are verified.
- Chapter 188 removes the prior 24-week limit and allows abortions at any stage based on a physician’s professional judgment rather than automatic statutory cutoffs.
- Anti-abortion groups organized as the Compassionate Care Coalition or Repeal188 submitted more than 113,000 signatures to the Secretary of the Commonwealth to trigger a 2028 referendum and to suspend the law pending verification.
- The Roman Catholic bishops of Massachusetts publicly rebuked Healey, saying there was no emergency and rejecting her use of faith to justify the law, while petition organizers called the preamble undemocratic.
- State health data show abortions at or after 24 weeks are very rare—99 in 2024 and 84 in 2023—which both supporters and opponents cite as they prepare for signature verification, possible litigation, and the 2028 ballot fight.