Governor Pataki Signs Emergency Contraception Bill
For Immediate Release
Wednesday, October 1, 2003
Contact: (212)343-0114
Statement of Kelli Conlin
NARAL/NY Executive Director
New York State Governor George Pataki Takes Action to Protect Rape Survivors: NARAL/NY Applauds Signing of Emergency Contraception for Sexual Assault Survivors Legislation
“No longer will a woman be denied comprehensive health care following a rape. Women who have been sexually assaulted will not need to travel to another hospital in another county or across the city to obtain emergency contraception (EC) to prevent an unwanted pregnancy. Hospital emergency rooms will now have to provide immediate access to this time-sensitive medication.
“Four years ago, NARAL/NY undertook the first statewide study examining the availability of EC for rape survivors in hospital emergency rooms. Research found that more than half of the hospitals in New York were failing to reliably inform about and provide EC to rape survivors. By signing this legislation into law, Governor Pataki has taken the final crucial step towards protecting survivors of sexual assault from unwanted pregnancy. This law will require all state hospitals to stop jeopardizing women’s health by denying sexual assault survivors immediate access to EC.”
There are more than 32,000 pregnancies resulting from sexual assault in the U.S. each year. If all of these women received emergency contraception after a sexual assault, as many as 28,000 of these pregnancies could be prevented. Emergency contraception is a safe and effective method of preventing pregnancy, approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration. Research proves that emergency contraception is nearly seven times more effective when taken within 24 hours. However, until now, too many hospitals in New York either did not take appropriate steps to ensure that sexual assault survivors can prevent pregnancy, or had ambiguous policies that do not guarantee the delivery of proper medical care to sexual assault survivors.
“By signing this important legislation into law, Governor Pataki will ensure that all hospitals meet appropriate medical standards for the treatment of sexual assault survivors. Our legislative champions, Susan John and Nick Spano, were truly heroes in pushing this measure. New York’s women are indebted to them for their leadership and commitment.”
| 
