Restrictions

As of 2019, New York law generally prohibits abortion after twenty-four weeks post-fertilization, unless the fetus is not viable or the pregnant person’s life or health, including mental health, is at risk.¹

State Protections

New York has both constitutional and statutory protections for abortion. In 2019, New York enacted a statutory protection for abortion as a fundamental right.² It states:

The legislature finds that comprehensive reproductive health care is a fundamental component of every individual’s health, privacy and equality. Therefore, it is the policy of the state that: 1. Every individual has the fundamental right to choose or refuse contraception or sterilization. 2. Every individual who becomes pregnant has the fundamental right to choose to carry the pregnancy to term, to give birth to a child, or to have an abortion, pursuant to this article. 3. The state shall not discriminate against, deny, or interfere with the exercise of the rights set forth in this section in the regulation or provision of benefits, facilities, services or information.

In 2024, voters approved the Equal Rights Amendment, amending the state constitution to prohibit discrimination based on sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy, pregnancy outcomes, and reproductive healthcare and autonomy.³

The state provides public funding for abortion and requires private insurance coverage of abortion care.⁴ State law authorizes certain health-care practitioners, including advanced practice clinicians (APCs), to provide abortion care,⁵ and includes protections for clinic safety and access by prohibiting interference,⁶ and allows abortion providers, patients, clinic staff, and volunteers to maintain address confidentiality.⁷ The FY24 state budget allocated over $100 million in public funding to expand access to abortion and reproductive healthcare in the state, building on the $35 million investment included in the FY23 budget.⁸ Through its FY24 budget, New York City provided $850,000 to the New York Abortion Access Fund.⁹

In 2023, New York enacted a law expanding the 2022 statutory shield protections to New York providers and others who help patients outside of New York access abortion via telemedicine.¹⁰ Further, New York allows anyone sued in another state for providing, accessing, or helping someone access legal abortion care in New York to file their own legal action for unlawful interference with a protected right, and collect compensatory and punitive damages from the out-of-state litigant.¹¹

Post-Roe Prohibitions

New York does not have a pre-Roe ban, as the state first legalized abortion in 1970 without residency requirements.¹²

Conclusion

Now that the Supreme Court has overturned Roe, abortion will remain legal in New York. In 2019, New York enacted comprehensive abortion rights legislation, expanding access to abortion care in the state, and in 2022 enacted additional protections for abortion providers and helpers. In 2024, voters approved an amendment to the New York Constitution to prohibit discrimination based on pregnancy outcomes and reproductive healthcare and autonomy.