Gov: ‘Leaving no stone unturned’ for N.Y. safe haven

Gov. Hochul, who has vowed that New York will open its gates wide to out-of-staters seeking abortions if the Supreme Court follows through on its plans to overturn Roe v. Wade, said Thursday that she is examining ways to bolster the state’s status as a national safe haven.

“We’re looking at our laws right now to find out how we can protect providers and people who come to our state for this as well,” Hochul (inset) told ABC News.

In 2019, New York lawmakers codified Roe’s protections into the state law. Hochul, a Democrat, said she also wants the protections enshrined in the state Constitution, as a safeguard in case federal law is enacted that would supersede the state law.

Democrats control the state Legislature in Albany, and New York has some of the most robust reproductive rights in the country. Health insurers are required to cover abortions in the state.

“It’s a whole different ball game here in the State of New York, but that doesn’t mean our hearts don’t ache for our sisters in all these other states that are really going to be under the rule of tyranny now — no control of their own bodies,” Hochul told ABC. “This is absolutely appalling.”

The Supreme Court, remade by President Donald Trump, appears to have voted narrowly in a Mississippi case to eliminate the constitutional right to abortion. Politico on Monday published a draft opinion in the case that would unwind a half-century of American jurisprudence.

“We’re leaving no stone unturned to make sure that New Yorkers and people across this country are safe to continue to receive something we consider a human right,” Hochul said. “If this is going to be violated by Donald Trump’s picks on the Supreme Court, then we’re standing ready.”