• June 16, 2005- State Senate votes unanimously in support of the Emergency Contraception bill. The bill would require hospital emergency rooms to offer emergency contraception (also known as the morning-after pill or EC) to rape survivors and allow women to access EC directly from trained pharmacists without having to visit a doctor first.
  

• July 6, 2005- House votes 135-17 in favor of the EC bill.
  

• July 20, 2005- Differences between the House and Senate bills are ironed out in conference committee, resulting in a strong piece of legislation that ensures that all women who have been raped, no matter which hospital they visit, will be offered Emergency Contraception.
  

• July 20, 2005- Senate unanimously approves this final version of the bill.
  

• July 21, 2005- House votes 142-9 to enact the final version of the bill.
  

• July 25, 2005- Gov. Romney vetoes the EC bill hours after it reaches his desk, saying he believes EC can cause an abortion and shouldn't be available to minors without parental consent.
  

• September 15, 2005- EC bill passes! The legislature votes overwhelmingly to override the Governor's veto. The Senate votes 37-0 and the House votes 139-16 to increase access to EC for the women of Massachusetts.
  

• December 14, 2005- EC law goes into effect! Hospital emergency rooms are required to offer EC to rape survivors and pharmacists can take a training to provide EC directly to women.
  

For more information on the bill from NARAL Pro-Choice Massachusetts, click here.

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