Further distancing New York from the national drift to the right, New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo called for a state constitutional amendment to safeguard abortion rights in the case that Roe v. Wade is overturned. This proposal came nearly a week after Cuomo announced that his administration would require health insurers to cover most forms of contraception and cover medically necessary abortions at no cost.
Addressing hundreds of pro-choice, abortion-rights supporters at a rally in Albany, Cuomo said, “Our rights are under attack in Washington.” “As they pull on our rights, we’re going to push back,” he said.
Cecile Richards, president of Planned Parenthood introduced Cuomo at Monday’s rally and acclaimed the governor’s plan. “This is so critical. It’s a national right,” she said.
At the rally, abortion-rights supporters also expressed concerns over Trump’s nominee for the United States Supreme Court just days before he announced that it would be conservative, pro-life Neil Gorsuch, affirming fears that the new court could overturn Roe v. Wade.
New York statute legalized abortion three years before the landmark 1973 Supreme Court case. However, Cuomo impressed the importance of a constitutional amendment to ensure that current abortion rights are not rolled back. Andrea Miller, National Institute for Reproductive Health employee, lobbied for the law for years in her former role with NARAL New York, expressing that the 1970 statute is outdated and needs to be modernized. For example, New York’s law allows abortions after twenty four weeks to save the life of the mother but it does not allow protections if the woman’s health is in danger.
Republicans leaders in the state Senate will likely oppose Cuomo’s proposal. Attempts to safeguard abortion have been tried over the past decade, beginning with former Governor Eliot Spitzer in 2007 and continuing under Governor Cuomo. Republicans had yet to respond to Cuomo’s proposal on Monday.
Constitutional amendments require two separate legislative votes before going to voters, which means that it could take years before it appears on the ballot in New York. It is unlikely that it would go before voters until 2019 at the earliest.
To circumvent the constitutional amendment process, Democratic state Senator Liz Krueger of Manhattan sponsored legislation that would codify Roe in the New York statute, which is something that could be accomplished more quickly than a constitutional amendment.
“A constitutional amendment wouldn’t take effect until 2019 at the very earliest — and likely much later,” Krueger said. “That’s simply too long for New Yorkers to wait.”