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Massachusetts Democratic Gov. Maura Healey set off an online firestorm over the weekend over a plan to expand the commonwealth’s Welcome Family program, which she spoke about in a clip that went viral on social media.
Healey made the controversial comments in an appearance last week on Boston Public Radio, where she discussed the state’s taxpayer-funded plan to send nurses into the homes of new parents after childbirth.
“Everybody in the state, when you have a baby, you’re going to have a home visit within days, weeks and that will be an opportunity for a healthcare provider to make an assessment to see if you need some additional support and resources,” Healey explained.
The clip quickly made waves on social media, with conservatives blasting the governor’s government expansion.
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“Does this sound like a good idea?” conservative radio host Howie Carr wrote on X in a post viewed almost 2 million times.
“I’m sorry what?!” Conservative influencer account Libs of TikTok wrote on X in a post that was viewed over 2 million times. “MA Governor Maura Healey says everyone who has a baby will be visited in their home by a government appointed healthcare provider ‘to make an assessment’. Stay out of our homes you power hungry creep.”
“IDK who needs to hear this… but the government DOES NOT OWN your baby,” Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C. posted on X. “Everyone needs to re-read 1984. “
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“Lunatic libs,” Sen. Tim Sheehy, R-Mont., posted on X.
Fox News Digital reached out to Healey’s office for comment.
Healey announced the expansion last week in a press release that described the program as “voluntary” and meant to “strengthen postpartum care and mental health support for mothers and families across Massachusetts, with a focus on reaching people earlier, making support easier to access and helping providers connect patients to care when they need it.”
Postpartum care has been a major topic of conversation in Massachusetts in light of the highly publicized trial of Lindsay Clancy in the commonwealth, where a jury recently deadlocked and could not come to a consensus whether Clancy was guilty of killing her three young children. Clancy’s defense team argued that she suffered from severe postpartum mental illness.
“Becoming a mother is a profound life change, and every parent deserves support—not just during pregnancy, but in the months that follow,” Healey said in the release. “Postpartum depression, anxiety and other maternal mental health conditions are real medical conditions, and no mother should feel ashamed to ask for help or feel like she has to navigate this journey alone. We’re working to expand postpartum care, identify concerns earlier and connect families to the mental health support they need, because taking care of moms means taking care of the whole family.”
Amy Carnevale, chair of the Massachusetts Republican Party, told Fox News Digital in an interview that “this is an example of the government overreaching.”
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“I’m a mom of three,” Carnevale said. “I’m blessed to have three wonderful children. And, doctors, today, they ask about postpartum depression. They ask about the need for resources. So, there are plenty of resources available to women after they have children in Massachusetts and nationwide. And this example by Gov. Healey to send people into the homes of new moms is an example of government overreach and the Massachusetts Republican Party has been hearing from moms across the state, moms and dads across the state, really objecting to this new policy.”
Fox News Digital’s Amanda Macias contributed to this report
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