Reproductive Health Act

The Reproductive Health Act will protect the right to choose or refuse abortion and to choose or refuse contraception.

In the face of aggressive federal attacks on reproductive rights, New York's laws need to be strengthened to protect women's health and safety. In 2007, the US Supreme Court set a new and dangerous precedent when it upheld an abortion restriction that eroded the protection of a woman's health.

New York has a proud tradition of protecting reproductive rights. In 1970, New York was one of the first states in the nation to permit safe and legal abortion, greatly reducing maternal morbidity and mortality. While the law was groundbreaking at the time, it does not contain a health exception and needs to be strengthened to safeguard women's health and reproductive rights.

The Reproductive Health Act is needed because:

• We must protect women in the face of aggressive federal attacks on their health and rights.
  
• If the federal government continues to chip away at reproductive rights, New York's law will be insufficient to protect a woman's health.
  
• We need to strengthen state law to firmly establish the protection of a woman's health.
  
• We must protect an individual's right to make private reproductive health care decisions without government intrusion.
  
• Laws related to abortion services should be located in the public health code.
  
• We have the chance to strengthen our laws and continue New York's proud tradition of supporting women's reproductive health and rights.
  

It is important to know what The Reproductive Health Act would NOT do:

• The Act would not force religiously affiliated hospitals to provide abortion services. The Act does not change existing state and federal laws that allow providers to refrain from performing abortions based on their moral or religious beliefs.
• The Act would not allow unqualified medical professionals to provide abortion services. The provision of abortion without the proper qualifications would lead to medical misconduct charges.
• The Act would not legalize abortion through all nine months of pregnancy. Consistent with Roe v. Wade, the Act would allow abortion up to the time of viability and after that, only if there is a threat to the woman's health or life.
• The Act would not prevent additional regulations on abortion services in New York. The State will continue to regulate abortion in the same way it regulates the delivery of other health care services. The Act would prevent the State from imposing regulations on the provision of abortion that have no relation to health or safety.