Free abortion legal hotline launched in Massachusetts

As some states consider ways to restrict access to reproductive care after the fall of Roe v. Wade, Massachusetts is launching a new hotline offering free legal advice and resources to those seeking or offering abortions.

Launched on Monday, the Abortion Legal Hotline is for Massachusetts-based providers and attendants, as well as patients seeking care in the Commonwealth.

The Reproductive Equity Now Foundation launched the hotline in partnership with Attorney General Andrea Campbell, the Women’s Bar Foundation, the ACLU of Massachusetts and five major law firms.

“This helpline will serve as a confidential resource to connect Massachusetts health care providers and patients to obtain in-state abortion care with free legal advice,” Campbell said during the interview. a press conference on Monday. “This will help individuals and families – including those traveling from out of state seeking care – to access these essential health services.”

The hotline is available at 833-309-6301.

Carol Rose, executive director of the ACLU of Massachusetts, said the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization – which has ruled that abortion is not a constitutionally protected right – “has created a truly chaotic patchwork of abortion laws that make it very difficult for patients and providers to understand how navigate.

She described the hotline as an “essential mission” to ensure abortion is a right not just on paper, but in reality.

Rebecca Hart Holder, president of Reproductive Equity Now, said as soon as Texas passed a law in 2021 banning abortion as early as the sixth week of pregnancy, patients turned to Massachusetts for care. Last summer, then governor. Charlie Baker has signed a bill protecting providers and people seeking abortions from lawsuits by states with more restrictive laws.

“We prepared for the passage of these draconian, anti-abortion, anti-science laws by ensuring that clinicians across the Commonwealth could continue to provide loving, compassionate care, and that patients seeking that care in Massachusetts can access it,” said Hart Holder. . “So here’s the bottom line today: Abortion remains legal in Massachusetts, and no anti-abortion extremist should be able to cross our borders and challenge that.”

Senator Elizabeth Warren said the new hotline will ensure people know where the laws stand after Dobbs.

“One of the results of the Dobbs decision has been misinformation – misinformation about legal services, deception about where to receive health services, lies intended to discourage women from accessing basic reproductive health care” , she said. “With this hotline, Massachusetts is fighting misinformation, deception and outright lies.”

Rep. Katherine Clark called the hotline “a spark of hope for those who need it most.”

Addressing those who have had an abortion or are seeking one, Representative Ayanna Pressley emphasized that there is no need to be ashamed of accessing reproductive care.

“The only shame is that there are relentless and coordinated legislative efforts and forces at work to deny you what is your basic human right,” Pressley said. “And that’s access to health care.”