The New York Senate on Tuesday passed a bill that would allow abortion until the last day of the term.
Today late abortions are illegal in New York. If this bill succeeds, they would be allowed now and non-doctors would be allowed to practice it. This measure would be the fulfillment of Governor Andrew Cuomo’s commitment, accompanied by Hillary Clinton, relayed by the NY Times , who pledged as early as Monday, January 07 to protect and expand the laws on abortion of the State in the first 30 days of the new legislative session.
According to Metro USA , the bill stipulates that New Yorkers will have the right to request an abortion within 24 weeks of the beginning of their pregnancy, or at any time if the pregnancy is not viable or if there is a risk to health.
But according to New York Right to Life , the exception for “health” after 24 weeks is described in a particularly blurry way. This clause would allow women to abort unborn babies up to the age of nine months for “age, economic, social and emotional factors, rather than the biological definition of” health “that normally comes to life. ‘spirit’.
The organization issued a memo opposing the Reproductive Health Act (RHA), denouncing the new 5-point measures:
- RHA would establish abortion as a fundamental right in NY
- RHA would allow abortion until the day of the term
- RHA would allow any caregiver to perform an abortion
- RHA would limit protections of women and children to birth illegal abortions
- RHA would repeal the standard medical protection of mothers and children
Another risk would be that an abusive family or a dishonest practitioner for example, is no longer judged for illegally killing a baby against the will of the mother. The Catholic News Service reports a story to illustrate the problem:
“In early December, a Saratoga County resident was arrested for pounding the stomach of a 26-week-old pregnant woman to cause miscarriage. The man was charged with second degree abortion, but under the RHA, the attacker would not have been charged with a crime. “
At the announcement of the validation of the bill, Karen DeWitt, a public radio journalist said to have heard a voice in the assembly exclaim.
“May Almighty God have mercy on this state. “
Senate passes RHA 38-24, voice can be heard shouting "may almighty god have mercy on this state"
— Karen DeWitt (@kdewitt7) January 22, 2019