“Abortion has been legal in New York State since 1970, even when it was illegal at the federal level. Today’s passage of the Reproductive Health Act came under the false narratives that the legality of women’s rights are being jeopardized, and this was a necessary legal step to simply formalize Roe v. Wade in state law.

In reality, this bill goes beyond anything we have seen before. The legislation passed today:

• expands abortion into the third trimester, allowing for a pregnancy to be terminated up until the moment of birth;
• takes away important protections for pregnant women who suffer violent attacks that injure or kill their unborn child; and
• threatens the health and safety of women by allowing abortions to be performed by individuals who are not physicians.

New York is home to the highest abortion rates in the nation and some of the least-restrictive abortion laws. Access and opportunity have been here for decades. Today’s effort represents an extreme step down a very troubling road.”