No Cost Abortion Pills Must Be Available At NYC Health Clinics: Bill

NEW YORK CITY — Abortion pills soon could be available "at no cost" at all New York City-run health clinics under a new bill passed by lawmakers.

City Council members Thursday voted 41-7 on the bill requiring all health department clinics to provide FDA-approved abortion pills.

The measure is only the latest in a spate of actions designed to keep New York City and the state as a "safe harbor" for abortion access after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.

Carlina Rivera, the bill's prime sponsor and a congressional candidate, also shepherded a bill to fight back against fake abortion clinics in the city.

"These bills help eliminate obstacles to abortion care like cost and misinformation," she tweeted. "By offering access to free medical abortion and requiring robust educational campaigns on predatory fake clinics, people seeking care can be empowered to make real decisions for themselves."

The bills await Mayor Eric Adams' signature for final approval.

Adams has called the Supreme Court ruling "an affront to basic human rights" and revealed that his girlfriend when he was a teenager had an abortion.

Advocates believe that abortion pills likely will be used more commonly as people from states with bans on the procedure travel to places like New York, as detailed in the New York Times.