Healthcare was a selling point in Massachusetts recently when lawmakers signed legislation removing gestational limits on abortion, joining a growing list of states with minimal restrictions.
After signing the bill, Gov. Maura Healey (D-Massachusetts) said she was proud to approve the measure.
“My opponents are anti-abortion, but the bottom line for people in Massachusetts: if you care about women's health, if you care about making sure that women are able to access the health care that they need — in consultation with their doctors, to be clear — I stand with women,” said Healey. “My opponents do not.”
Speaking to AFN on the issue, Kelsey Pritchard, communications director of Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, said the mindset or phrase that “abortion is healthcare” distorts the core definition of medical treatment.
“Abortion can't be healthcare because it results in the death of another human being,” Pritchard said.
She emphasized the specifics of abortion procedures — from chemical regimens to second- and third-trimester surgical methods — arguing that true healthcare is intended to protect and sustain human life rather than end it.
“If it's abortion drugs, we're talking about chemical abortions that starve unborn children of the nutrients they need to survive. If it's second- and third-trimester abortions, we're talking about dismemberment,” Pritchard stated. “That's a euphemism used by the abortion lobby to deceive what abortion actually is and get people to believe their lies and get them to fork over more dollars to the abortion industry.”
Pritchard also highlighted a recent high-profile surrogacy case in Texas, where a court ordered life-saving heart surgery for a newborn after the biological parents had requested a third-trimester abortion following a diagnosis in utero.
“The surrogate case that we've all been watching is an awful reminder that abortions in the third trimester happen and are legal in 12 states now across our country,” Pritchard said. “The whole case just brings to light the tragic reality that, when women receive some sort of diagnosis of their baby in utero, they are pushed to abort.”
As the debate over abortion legislation and Medicaid funding continues nationwide, pro-life organizations and leaders say they will continue challenging the messaging used by abortion advocates, warning that similar measures are rapidly spreading across the country.
Kristen Day, executive director of Democrats for Life, says voters outside of progressive strongholds shouldn't take current protections for granted. According to her, a major fight is brewing in Virginia over a proposed constitutional amendment that would establish abortion as a constitutional right, rolling back key safeguards.
“There's a constitutional amendment on the ballot in the fall that would make abortion a constitutional right, take away parental consent and other safety measures,” Day said. “People should pay attention and look for the money coming in from out of state to pass these abortion initiatives.”
Other groups concerned about the Virginia vote include Virginia Society for Human Life, the Family Foundation of Virginia and Liberty Counsel Action.
Day cautioned that massive spending from out-of-state groups — often totaling tens of millions of dollars — is driving these amendments state by state. She is urging voters and pro-life advocates not to stay silent as the debate intensifies.
