Emergency amendments filed by the Massachusetts Board of Registration in Medicine were finalized April 9, codifying protections for physicians in the state who deliver reproductive and gender-affirming healthcare services.
Here are four things to know about the shield laws:
1. According to an April 9 report by Chicago-based law firm Husch Blackwell, the new law prohibits disciplinary action for the provision of reproductive healthcare services or gender-affirming healthcare services that are legally protected in the state.
2. The law states that no person will be disqualified from physician licensure in Massachusetts for providing or assisting in providing protected services.
3. Protected services are defined by the shield law as:
- Exercising or attempting to exercise the right to reproductive healthcare services or gender-affirming healthcare in Massachusetts.
- Helping another to exercise or attempt to exercise the right to reproductive healthcare services or gender-affirming healthcare in Massachusetts.
4. Under the new law, the board is prohibited from including information about the provision or assistance in providing protected services in physician profiles accessible to the public.
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