The Reality of Accessing Abortion in the Bluest of States

That sign about taxpayer funded abortion was part of a campaign by the Massachusetts Alliance to Stop Taxpayer Funded Abortion to exclude abortion from state funded health care.  In 1981, the Supreme Court ruled that states didn't have to include abortion as part of their Medicaid  coverage, but 15  do, including Massachusetts. (You can find out if your state does here.)  The campaign failed in December after the group didn't get enough signatures.

This is, of course, great news for folks who need abortions in Massachusetts, but there are other obstacles someone might come up against when they're looking to access the procedure. Massachusetts has a parental consent law, so if you're under 18, you have to ask your parents to sign off on an abortion. You can get an abortion at up to 27 weeks if you can prove your life is at stake. And, according to the Guttmacher Institute, as of 2014, 43% of Massachusetts counties had no abortion provider.

Massachusetts is not an enormous state - you can drive from east to west in about 2 hours, but that doesn't mean getting to a clinic is going to be super easy. There's weather to contend with, for one thing, that makes travel more complicated if not impossible, and while there's public transportation in cities like Boston, Worcester and Springfield, as well as college towns like Amherst, there are many small towns that don't have it. For example, a cab ride from Ware to Amherst, (both towns in the western part of the state), which are about 30 minutes apart by car, will cost you around $60, and that's if you can get a cab company to come to Ware. If you live in Ware and you need an abortion, you can either go to the Planned Parenthood in Springfield (about 40 minutes away), or in Worcester (about an hour away).

If you live on Cape Cod, including Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket, it's even more complicated. In June 2016, the Cape Cod Times reported on the lack of access to abortion in the area, which often results in those who need an abortion having to travel out of state. You might be able to get to Boston, where there's a Planned Parenthood, but weather and transportation play a big role in being able to travel. On the islands of Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket, ferry service is dictated by the weather, not to mention the fact that the income of folks who live in these communities year round is far below that which is enjoyed by those who summer there. So while you might qualify for abortion coverage under MassHealth, it's irrelevant if you can't travel to Boston or elsewhere to actually get an abortion.