Summary
In April 2007, former Governor Eliot Spitzer submitted a Program Bill entitled the “Reproductive Health and Privacy Protection Act.” This bill would establish a “fundamental right to privacy” in New York statute to guarantee that abortion is protected and available. In the words of the former Governor, the bill would “ensure that New York’s women have the same or stronger reproductive rights as those currently afforded under Roe (v Wade).” Essentially the same bill was reintroduced in the 2011-2012 Legislative Session as S.2844 (Stewart-Cousins)/A.6112 (Glick), the “Reproductive Health Act,” and is supported by Governor Andrew Cuomo.
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Summary
Legislation is encouraged which would positively promote ethical adult stem cell research and prohibit embryonic stem cell research and human cloning.
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Summary
In June 2004 the New York Court of Appeals struck down New York’s death penalty statute, holding it unconstitutional under the New York State Constitution. In October 2007 the Court affirmed that ruling, and the last remaining death sentence in the state was vacated. Thus, New York State may not impose the death penalty at the current time.
However, a more long-term solution continues to be needed to ensure that the death penalty is repealed from the statutes of New York State. In December 2007, New Jersey became the first state in the nation to legislatively abolish capital punishment, followed by New Mexico in 2009 and Illinois in 2011. New York State should follow their lead.
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Summary
New York’s current law prohibits the practice of physician-assisted suicide, wherein doctors prescribe lethal doses of drugs to end the lives of terminally ill patients who wish to die. Three health care professionals and three terminally ill persons unsuccessfully challenged this law (NYS Penal Law Sections 125.15(3) and 120.30) in 1994.
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