State Assembly Approves Reproductive Health Protections Ahead of Trump Presidency

NEW YORK, Jan. 18 -- New York Civil Liberties Union issued the following news release:

The New York State Assembly last night passed the Reproductive Health Act (RHA) and the Comprehensive Contraception Coverage Act (CCCA), two bills that protect women's reproductive health and rights in New York State.

The RHA brings New York's abortion law in line with constitutional standards established in Roe v. Wade and subsequent decisions. New York's abortion law was last updated in 1970, three years before the Supreme Court's landmark Roe decision, and prohibits care even when serious complications arise later in pregnancy. The RHA affirms the right to privacy, to appropriate care throughout pregnancy, and would protect New Yorkers from laws intended to limit abortion access. The CCCA updates New York's insurance law to provide coverage of contraception for both women and men, improves the range of birth control options for women, and enables patients to fill twelve months of a prescription. The CCCA enshrines contraceptive coverage mandated by the Affordable Care Act, which is vulnerable to repeal by the new Congress and president.

The following is attributable to NYCLU Executive Director Donna Lieberman:

"The incoming Trump regime and the new Congress pose an unprecedented threat to women's rights. Trump isn't yet president and already Congress has taken steps to repeal Obamacare and its contraceptive coverage. This threatens a woman's ability to make fundamental decisions about her life and to participate equally in society. At the same time, Trump and allies have promised to roll back a woman's access to abortion care, barring a woman from making her own decisions about her health and well-being, and that of her family.

"The Trump regime has made it unmistakably clear that they cannot be counted on to respect a woman's ownership of her body and her destiny. That's why New York must act now to protect women's rights. The State Assembly has taken an important first step to resist the Trump agenda. The Reproductive Health Act and the Comprehensive Contraception Coverage Act are both critical to safeguarding women's health, dignity and rights in New York.

"We call on the Senate to pass these bills and put them before the Governor without delay. Women in New York cannot afford to wait."

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