BOSTON
The Massachusetts Senate on Tuesday voted to override the Republican governor’s veto of legislation that expands access to abortion in the state, making the measure law.
The Democratic-controlled Senate’s 32-8 override came a day after the Democratic-controlled House similarly voted to override Gov. Charlie Baker’s veto 107-46.
The bill, known as the Roe Act, codifies abortion rights into state law, allows abortions after 24 weeks of pregnancy in cases where the child will not survive after birth, and lowers from 18 to 16 the age at which women can seek an abortion without consent from a parent or guardian.
As a Massachusetts proposal to expand abortion access nears the finish line, a longtime advocate now finds reproductive rights issues âhitting homeâ particularly hard.
Rabbi Liz P.G. Hirsch of Temple Anshe Amunim in Pittsfield has advocated over the past two years for the Massachusetts Legislature to pass the ROE Act, which seeks to âremove obstacles and expand abortion access.â This year, Hirsch has become pregnant.
âItâs very present, this worry over where you fall in this spectrum of what can happen and what canât,â she said. âAnd in pregnancy, itâs not always assured what happens, and thereâs a lot of twists and turns that Iâm very closely in touch with right now, being pregnant.â