Statement on New York City FY2021 Budget from National Institute for Reproductive Health and the New York Abortion Access Fund
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 1, 2020
Contact: Liza Dee, [email protected]
Amid devastating cuts across the board, funding for abortion care is preserved
(New York, NY) — Last year, New York City became the first city in the country to fund abortion care, dedicating $250,000 to the New York Abortion Access Fund (NYAAF) to help people cover the cost of abortion care. In the budget passed late Tuesday night, New York City renewed that critical funding, but failed to honor community calls to defund the NYPD and preserve funding for safety net services so vital in this time of pandemic and reckoning with systemic racism throughout our city and institutions.
“We are glad to see that funding for essential abortion care will be renewed this year,” said Andrea Miller, president of NIRH and the NIRH Action Fund. “Access to timely and affordable reproductive health care is absolutely necessary right now, as so many are struggling with loss of income, sickness, and instability. But right now, our city — especially Black communities and people of color — need so much more. NIRH joined the call to envision what a more just budget looks like. Funding for abortion care is part of that picture, but it must begin with major cuts to the disproportionate NYPD budget, redirecting money to services in Black, Latinx, and other communities of color, and ensuring that we have police-free social services and schools. This year’s budget fails to live up to that potential.”
“While we’re grateful the NYC Council today affirmed abortion is essential care, failing to defund the NYPD undermines reproductive freedom in New York,” said Alicia Johnson, Board of Directors, New York Abortion Access Fund. “Policing separates families and inflicts anti-Black violence, which is antithetical to reproductive justice. While the City’s funding will help ensure we can continue to support people seeking abortion in New York, NYAAF will continue to push New York City policymakers to defund the police and invest in life-affirming resources.”
###
NIRH fights to advance reproductive freedom in cities and states across the country. NIRH is a leader in municipal-level reproductive health policy, producing the Local Reproductive Freedom Index, an analysis of the reproductive freedom policies of 50 major cities across the United States. NIRH led the charge in 2019 and 2020 to secure funding for abortion care in the New York City budget, and has worked with allies in Austin, TX and other localities to secure similar funding in their budgets.
NYAAF provides direct financial assistance for abortions, primarily to people living in or traveling to New York State. NYAAF operates with compassion and collaborates with its callers and movement partners to secure the resources people need to access abortion. NYAAF works towards a future where healthcare is a right and every person has the freedom and support to determine their sexual and reproductive destinies.