As states restrict access to abortion and other reproductive care, Senator Becca Rausch (D-Needham) secured $250,000 in the FY27 state budget to create and implement a reproductive care training pilot program to help ensure that medical students all across the country are fully trained in reproductive care, even those in states with restrictive abortion laws. This program will expand Massachusetts’ leadership in medical care and education.
“Abortion restrictions harm patients,” said Senator Becca Rausch. “They also impact would-be reproductive health care providers who cannot access necessary training because their medical residencies are in anti-choice states. The loss of trained providers further hurts patients, including those seeking miscarriage care. Massachusetts’ world-class medical schools are part of the solution for patients nationwide.”
Medical students’ limited licensure is tied to the state in which they complete their residencies. A student completing residency in Texas, for example, cannot get comprehensive reproductive care training there due to its abortion ban, nor could they in Massachusetts, because they do not have Massachusetts licensure or residency. The new law will create a narrow, limited licensure framework that will ensure that medical students with at least two years of experience can receive reproductive health care training here in Massachusetts.
Senator Rausch’s successful amendment appropriates $250,000 through the Department of Public Health for Massachusetts hospitals to provide out-of-state medical residents with abortion and abortion-related care training. It also directs DPH to issue a report on this pilot program by April 1, 2027. The measure was signed into law by Governor Healey on July 9, 2026.
