A survey conducted by Tides for Reproductive Freedom, a Massachusetts organization that helps people finance abortions, found that about 40% of those who could get an abortion in the state do not know where to get one.

This is just one of the obstacles the group discovered in a new survey of about 1,000 women who could have a child.

The survey found that organizing logistical issues, such as transportation to an appointment or recovery time after surgery, pose significant hurdles for abortion patients.

According to the survey, people in rural areas, including western Massachusetts, are less likely to know where they can get an abortion or that gynecologists offer abortion services.

People considering abortion in Massachusetts also continue to face negative attitudes from the media, religious leaders and their families, said Tides for Reproductive Freedom co-executive director Feyla McNamara.

The survey found that more than two-thirds of those considering abortion experience stigma in their community, McNamara said, and that this impacts whether or not they seek abortion care.

“One of the most important things we believe needs to be addressed in this state – comprehensive sex education that includes [the topic of] Abortion,” McNamara said, teaching about what it looks like to seek an abortion. “What would happen if you had a medication abortion versus a surgical abortion,” McNamara added.

Fewer than half of those surveyed knew that abortion funds exist to help patients obtain abortions and support them in keeping their appointments, McNamara said.

However, the poll found that public support for legalizing and making abortion accessible remains strong in Massachusetts.

Tides for Reproductive Freedom was founded in 2022 as an abortion fund and is led by people who have had abortions and are Black, Indigenous and part of the LGBTQ community.