BOSTON (AP) — Abortion opponents, many wearing red shirts, protested outside the Massachusetts Statehouse ahead of a public hearing on bills that would expand access to the procedure.
One bill at Monday’s hearing would let women obtain an abortion after 24 weeks of pregnancy in cases of “fatal fetal anomalies.”
The bill, called the “Roe Act” by supporters, would amend current state law which allows abortions after 24 weeks only to preserve the life or health of the mother.
The bill would also eliminate the requirement that teens obtain permission from a parent or judge before obtaining an abortion.
Supporters say the small numbers of women who seek the procedure are faced with a heartbreaking choice.
Massachusetts Republican Party Chairman Jim Lyons criticized the legislation as an “extreme infanticide bill.”
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