Massachusetts 2025-2026 Regular Session

Massachusetts House Bill H1815 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

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2	2	HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 2989 FILED ON: 1/16/2025
3	3	HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 1815
4	4	The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
5	5	_________________
6	6	PRESENTED BY:
7	7	Sally P. Kerans and Rebecca L. Rausch
8	8	_________________
9	9	To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
10	10	Court assembled:
11	11	The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:
12	12	An Act enhancing access to abortion.
13	13	_______________
14	14	PETITION OF:
15	15	NAME:DISTRICT/ADDRESS :DATE ADDED:Sally P. Kerans13th Essex1/16/2025Lindsay N. Sabadosa1st Hampshire1/21/2025Natalie M. Higgins4th Worcester1/28/2025Danillo A. Sena37th Middlesex1/31/2025Samantha Montaño15th Suffolk2/3/2025Manny Cruz7th Essex2/18/2025Susannah M. Whipps2nd Franklin2/18/2025Jennifer Balinsky Armini8th Essex2/18/2025David Paul Linsky5th Middlesex2/18/2025Marjorie C. Decker25th Middlesex2/18/2025Erika Uyterhoeven27th Middlesex2/20/2025Mary S. Keefe15th Worcester3/5/2025Adrianne Pusateri Ramos14th Essex3/11/2025Jay D. Livingstone8th Suffolk3/11/2025 1 of 7
16	16	HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 2989 FILED ON: 1/16/2025
17	17	HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 1815
18	18	By Representative Kerans of Danvers and Senator Rausch, a joint petition (accompanied by bill,
19	19	House, No. 1815) of Sally P. Kerans, Lindsay N. Sabadosa and others relative to further
20	20	regulating access to abortion care. The Judiciary.
21	21	The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
22	22	_______________
23	23	In the One Hundred and Ninety-Fourth General Court
24	24	(2025-2026)
25	25	_______________
26	26	An Act enhancing access to abortion.
27	27	Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority
28	28	of the same, as follows:
29	29	1 SECTION 1. Chapter 111 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2022 Official Edition,
30	30	2is hereby amended by inserting the following section:-
31	31	3 Section 51M. (a) A hospital licensed under this chapter with an emergency care
32	32	4department shall provide emergency health services to any person who presents at the hospital in
33	33	5active labor or with an injury or acute medical condition that may cause death or severe harm to
34	34	6the individual’s health, including but not limited to serious impairment to one or more bodily
35	35	7functions, serious dysfunction of any bodily organ or part, a pregnant patient experiencing
36	36	8ectopic pregnancy, complications of pregnancy loss, risks to future fertility, previable preterm
37	37	9premature rupture of membranes, and emergent hypertensive disorders, such as preeclampsia.
38	38	10 (b) For purposes of this section, emergency health services shall include, but not be
39	39	11limited to, medical screening, the provision of necessary stabilizing treatment, procedures for
40	40	12refusals to consent, restricting transfers until the individual is stabilized, appropriate transfers of 2 of 7
41	41	13patients, nondiscrimination, no delay in examination or treatment, and whistleblower protections.
42	42	14Stabilizing treatment includes abortion when abortion is necessary to resolve the patient’s injury
43	43	15or acute medical condition.
44	44	16 (c) Annually, not later than September 1, every hospital licensed under this chapter with
45	45	17an emergency care department shall submit to the department a written report that includes the
46	46	18hospital’s policies, procedures and processes for providing services consistent with this section.
47	47	19 (d) A hospital or person violating any of the provisions of this section or refusing to
48	48	20perform any duties required by this section shall be subject to a fine not exceeding $50,000 for
49	49	21each violation. A hospital or person engaging in gross, flagrant, or repetitive violations of this
50	50	22section shall be subject to license revocation.
51	51	23 (e) An individual who suffers personal harm as a direct result of a violation of a
52	52	24requirement of this section may obtain damages in a court of competent jurisdiction.
53	53	25 (f) The department shall promulgate regulations to implement this section.
54	54	26 SECTION 2. Section 12F of chapter 112 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2022
55	55	27Official Edition, is hereby amended by striking out, in lines 14 and 15, the words “have come in
56	56	28contact with” and inserting in place thereof the following words:- be at risk of contracting.
57	57	29 SECTION 3. Said section 12F of said chapter 112, as so appearing, is hereby further
58	58	30amended by inserting, in line 18, after the word “diagnosis” the following words:- , prevention.
59	59	31 SECTION 4. Said section 12F of said chapter 112, as so appearing, is hereby further
60	60	32amended by striking out the third paragraph. 3 of 7
61	61	33 SECTION 5. Said chapter 112, as so appearing, is hereby further amended in section 12I
62	62	34by adding at the end thereof the following sentence:- No conscientious objection shall be valid if
63	63	35an abortion is required to preserve the life of a pregnant person and no medical staff other than
64	64	36the objector are available to perform or support the performance of the abortion.
65	65	37 SECTION 6. Said chapter 112, as so appearing, is hereby further amended in section 12K
66	66	38by striking out, in line 1, the word “12R” and inserting in place thereof the following word:-
67	67	3912R.3.
68	68	40 SECTION 7. Said section 12K of said chapter 112, as so appearing, is hereby further
69	69	41amended by adding the following definitions:-
70	70	42 “Abortion-related care”, a medically appropriate service complementary to the
71	71	43performance of an abortion.
72	72	44 “Provider”, a licensed health care professional who, acting within their scope of practice,
73	73	45may lawfully perform an abortion or provide abortion-related care.
74	74	46 “Provider facility”, a structure in which a provider performs abortions or provides
75	75	47abortion-related care.
76	76	48 SECTION 8. Said chapter 112, as so appearing, is hereby further amended in section 12L
77	77	49by inserting, in lines 4 and 5, after the word “abortion”, in each instance, the following words:-
78	78	50or abortion-related care.
79	79	51 SECTION 9. Said chapter 112, as so appearing, is hereby further amended in section
80	80	5212M by striking out, in lines 1 and 2, the words “physician, physician assistant, nurse
81	81	53practitioner or nurse midwife” and inserting in place thereof the following word:- provider. 4 of 7
82	82	54 SECTION 10. Said chapter 112, as so appearing, is hereby further amended in section
83	83	5512N by striking out, in lines 2 and 3, the word “physician” each time it appears and inserting in
84	84	56place thereof, in each instance, the following word:- provider.
85	85	57 SECTION 11. Said chapter 112, as so appearing, is hereby further amended in section
86	86	5812N½ by striking out, in lines 3 and 5, the word “physician” each time it appears and inserting in
87	87	59place thereof, in each instance, the following word:- provider.
88	88	60 SECTION 12. Section 12O of said chapter 112, as so appearing, is hereby repealed.
89	89	61 SECTION 13. Said chapter 112, as so appearing, is hereby further amended in section
90	90	6212P by striking out the second sentence.
91	91	63 SECTION 14. Said chapter 112, as so appearing, is hereby further amended in section
92	92	6412Q by striking out, in lines 2 and 3, the words “performed by a physician, physician assistant,
93	93	65certified nurse practitioner or certified nurse midwife”.
94	94	66 SECTION 15. Said chapter 112, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking
95	95	67out section 12R and inserting in place thereof the following sections:-
96	96	68 Section 12R. A provider must obtain a pregnant person’s written informed consent prior
97	97	69to performing an abortion in a multilingual form prescribed by the commissioner of the
98	98	70department of public health, and the pregnant person must execute said informed consent form
99	99	71prior to receiving an abortion, except: (1) in an emergency, when an abortion is required to
100	100	72preserve the health of the pregnant person, in which case the provider may perform the abortion
101	101	73without an executed informed consent form; or (2) when a pregnant person is incapacitated due
102	102	74to vegetative state, and said pregnant person was incapacitated prior to and at all times during the 5 of 7
103	103	75pregnancy, and another person serves as legally valid health care proxy for the pregnant person,
104	104	76in which case the health care proxy must execute the informed consent form. A pregnant
105	105	77person’s signature on the consent form shall not be deemed invalid due to the pregnant person’s
106	106	78age. No waiting period shall be imposed between the execution of the consent form and the
107	107	79performance of the abortion. Providers shall maintain executed informed consent forms for a
108	108	80period of time and in a manner consistent with retention of other medical records.
109	109	81 (b) The consent form and any other forms or related documents shall be confidential and
110	110	82shall not be released to any person other than the patient, the person whose consent is validly
111	111	83obtained pursuant to this section or any other applicable state or federal law, or the provider who
112	112	84performed the abortion, except by the patient’s written informed consent or proper judicial order.
113	113	85 Section 12R.1. (a) No pregnant person shall be required, as a precondition to receiving
114	114	86health-related information, health services or medical care, to: (i) wait for any period of time,
115	115	87beyond the standard of care or as may be operationally necessary, after executing the informed
116	116	88consent form required by this chapter to initiate an abortion or abortion-related care; (ii) undergo
117	117	89an ultrasound inconsistent with the standard of care; (iii) review, see, or hear the results of an
118	118	90ultrasound; (iv) appear at a provider facility for purposes of receiving an abortion or abortion-
119	119	91related care more frequently or for a longer duration than is consistent with the standard of care;
120	120	92or (v) receive counseling or information in any format or medium that is medically inaccurate,
121	121	93medically unnecessary, or misleading.
122	122	94 (b) Provider facilities shall not be required to: (i) affiliate in any way with, or be
123	123	95constructed within a specified distance of, a hospital, as defined in section 52 of chapter 111; (ii)
124	124	96construct or maintain medically unnecessary physical structures, sizes, or spaces; (iii) hire only 6 of 7
125	125	97providers with admitting privileges at a hospital, as defined in section 52 of chapter 111; or (iv)
126	126	98comply with any other medically unnecessary physical or operational standards or requirements.
127	127	99Provider facilities shall be required to comply or substantially comply with the licensure
128	128	100requirements for clinics providing ambulatory surgery, consistent with section 51 of chapter 111,
129	129	101only if the provider facility otherwise operates as a free standing ambulatory surgical center.
130	130	102 (c) The attorney general shall enforce this section, provided that nothing herein shall
131	131	103preclude a private right of action asserting violations thereof. All actions must be commenced
132	132	104within ten years after the cause of action accrues.
133	133	105 Section 12R.2. (a) The department of public health shall publish on its website and in
134	134	106print copy a listing of provider facilities opting to be included on said listing. The listing shall be
135	135	107updated annually, or more frequently as required or requested by a provider or provider facility.
136	136	108 (b) The department of public health shall engage in a culturally competent and
137	137	109linguistically diverse public education campaign to educate providers and the public about so-
138	138	110called crisis pregnancy centers and pregnancy resource centers, including without limitation the
139	139	111lack of medical services or licensed medical professionals at said centers and the availability of
140	140	112licensed medical and family planning services across the commonwealth.
141	141	113 (c) The department of veterans services shall, in consultation with the department of
142	142	114public health, provide information to veterans residing in the commonwealth and their families
143	143	115regarding available abortion services and support for obtaining those services, including without
144	144	116limitation financial assistance provided pursuant to chapter 118E.
145	145	117 Section 12R.3. A health care professional working in a school based health center shall
146	146	118keep confidential any reproductive health care information or services provided to a patient at the 7 of 7
147	147	119center, including but not limited to contraceptive counseling and abortion-related information or
148	148	120care.