The overwhelming majority of Massachusetts house lawmakers just passed a bill that would allow abortions after 24 weeks in the state. The bill, H.5595, needs to clear the state Senate before implementation.

Unfortunately for pro-life advocates in the state, the Massachusetts Senate boasts a 35:5 seat majority, meaning that it will take nothing short of a miracle to prevent H.5595 from being signed into law after the legislative session ends on Friday.

The bill’s sponsor, state Representative Christine Barber, told the Boston Globe she was inspired by the number of women travelling out of state to receive later abortions. “You should be able to get care that your doctors are recommending here in Massachusetts,” she said.

Opponents have underscored the fact that women already have access to all the care they need in Massachusetts. Pro-life advocates have emphasized that women can receive timely, life-saving care even in states with the strongest pro-life restrictions on abortion.

What’s more, Massachusetts state law already permits abortions after 24 weeks — at which point unborn babies have a heartbeat, are fully formed, and can feel pain — to protect a mother’s life or health. Pro-life advocates have repeatedly highlighted how the term “health” can be interpreted to include mental or emotional health, thereby permitting abortions under any circumstance and at any time. In other words, women already have access to late-term abortions in Massachusetts without the new bill.

This suggests that pro-abortion advocates are using the bill as a way to normalize late-term abortions in the state. Some, like Barber, claim it’s about getting women “recommended care.” In reality, pro-life advocates are pointing to the truth that the law is more about pushing an extreme abortion agenda at women’s expense.

Pro-life advocates associated with the pro-life group Massachusetts Citizens for Life have denounced the bill as prioritizing abortion activism over women’s health and safety.

“Women experiencing unimaginable, heart wrenching pregnancy complications deserve all the support they need, but that support is not what this bill provides,” MCF President Myrna Maloney said. “Instead, this bill ensures increased abortion industry profits and taxpayer-funded late-term procedures.”

Now, Massachusetts residents will wait to see the consequences of the state’s rampage against life.