Mayor Mitchell Joins Mass Mayors Urging Lawmakers to Pass ROE Act

BOSTON — New Bedford Mayor Jon Mitchell has joined 15 other mayors from across the Commonwealth in signing a letter calling on lawmakers to advance a bill known as the ROE Act.

The bill would take away parental consent requirements for teenagers seeking an abortion, would allow for abortions to be performed after 24 weeks of pregnancy to protect the physical or mental health of a patient, and would include abortion in the pregnancy-related "safety-net" health coverage for citizens that are ineligible for MassHealth.

According to the State House News Service, five out of the group of 16 mayors rallied outside the statehouse Tuesday to urge lawmakers to pass the bill, which aims to increase access to abortion and to speak generally about reproductive care access. The gathering included Boston Mayor Marty Walsh, Lawrence Mayor Daniel Rivera, Framingham Mayor Yvonne Spicer, Newburyport Mayor Donna Holaday and Easthampton Mayor Nicolle LaChapelle.

The Boston-area mayors reportedly spoke out against abortion restriction on the federal level with the intention of sending “a message to other states and to the Trump administration.”

Statehouse News also reports that along with Mayor Mitchell, the letter is also signed by Worcester Mayor Joseph Petty, Holyoke Mayor Alex Morse, Northampton Mayor David Narkewicz, Newton Mayor Ruthanne Fuller, Medford Mayor Stephanie Burke, Salem Mayor Kimberly Driscoll, Cambridge Mayor Marc McGovern, Beverly Mayor Michael Cahill, Melorse Mayor Gail Infurna and Malden Mayor Gary Christenson.

WBSM News has reached out to Mayor Mitchell for comment.