Massachusetts Eliminates Fetal Viability Standard from Abortion Law
Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey has signed a new law that removes restrictions on when a woman can receive an abortion during her pregnancy. This makes Massachusetts the tenth state in recent years to eliminate the fetal viability standard from its abortion regulations. Historically, viability—the point at which a fetus has a meaningful chance of survival outside the womb—was a key component of abortion law, notably established by Roe v. Wade. This standard allowed states to prohibit abortion only after viability. However, since the overturning of Roe v. Wade, abortion rights advocates in states like Massachusetts are increasingly rejecting viability as an arbitrary, medically imprecise, and stigmatizing concept. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists now opposes its use in abortion regulations due to the lack of a single definition or straightforward way to establish viability. Groups such as Pregnancy Justice and the National Institute for Reproductive Health argue that the viability... 
