Update NY’s antiquated law on abortion through Reproductive Health Act (Syracuse.com)
Syracuse.com, June 20, 2017
Update NY’s antiquated law on abortion through Reproductive Health Act (Commentary)
Bridgette Dunlap is a Member of the New York City Bar Association’s Sex and Law Committee and a legal consultant and freelance writer.
“Today, however, New York’s once groundbreaking pre-Roe abortion law is dangerously out of date. The statute remains in the criminal code, which itself can act as a deterrent for medical professionals. Moreover, the statute is not in line with the Supreme Court’s interpretation of constitutionally required entitlements, an incongruity that may cause confusion and potentially denial of services that women are entitled to obtain. Worse, women who resort to self-induction because they lack access to clinic-based abortion are subject to prosecution under the law — scapegoating underserved women for the inadequacies of our reproductive health infrastructure. The Reproductive Health Act would change that — finally treating abortion as health care rather than a crime and aligning New York law with Roe. The bill passed the Assembly in January and is waiting for Senate leadership to determine whether it will get a vote. Like the conscience-driven reformers and brave legislators who reformed New York’s abortion law in 1970, our Senate must do what is right and recognize that women’s health cannot wait.”
