ADAMS ADMINISTRATION VOWS TO FIGHT FEDERAL COURT RULING POTENTIALLY BANNING MEDICATION ABORTION DRUG NATIONWIDE

 

New York City Mayor Eric Adams and leaders in the Adams administration today vowed to help fight a federal court ruling that made it harder for women nationwide to access an abortion and ensure women can continue to make their own reproductive decisions. Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas — a Donald Trump appointee — this evening issued a ruling in the case Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine v. FDA, effectively making the prescription of the medication abortion drug mifepristone illegal nationwide in one week, including here in New York City, barring emergency relief being ordered by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.

“Nearly 10 months ago, a Supreme Court packed with Trump appointees issued a ruling taking us 50 years back in time as they sought to shackle women and others in reproductive bondage. Make no mistake, today’s ruling by another Trump appointee could make it even harder for people to access an abortion, even here in New York City, and is a clear act of war on women,” said Mayor Adams. “In New York City, more than 2,000 women had medication abortions at NYC Health + Hospitals facilities last year, and we recently expanded abortion access, making medication abortion available for free at our city-run health clinics — becoming the first health department in the nation to do so — but banning one of the medications for the simplest, quickest, and most commons ways for women to access abortions nationwide is a cruel and inhumane decision by a court set on trampling the law, not upholding it. While women here in New York still have other options for abortion, even if this Texas decision is allowed to stand, they and women from across the country should know that our administration will fight every day to stop efforts to control women’s bodies, their choices, and their freedoms.”

"In the nearly 10 months following the Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe, millions of women have seen their right to a safe, legal abortion restricted and, in some cases, completely taken away," said First Deputy Mayor Sheena Wright. "We knew then that the forces pushing to control women's bodies wouldn't stop there, and today's decision by a Texas court is yet another assault on women's rights, potentially cutting off access to health care for millions more. Today, we recommit ourselves to staying vigilant, focused, and continue pressing forward in the fight for reproductive rights.

“This is a generational rollback in access to health care, said Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services Anne Williams-Isom. “New York City is and will remain a hub for reproductive health care that everyone needs and deserves. Our Department of Health and public hospital system will extend every measure to ensure that everyone has the support and access they need to inform their reproductive health care.”

“This Texas court ruling is a major setback for millions of women across the country, including those here in New York, who seek safe and accessible reproductive care,” said New York City Corporation Counsel Sylvia O. Hinds-Radix. “We disagree with the judge’s ruling, which threatens to set aside the FDA’s sound, science-based determination and make a safe medication unavailable nationwide. The City of New York will support the federal government’s legal effort to reverse this harmful decision and restore the FDA with the authority it should have under the law.”

For more than 20 years, mifepristone, used in combination with the drug misoprostol, has been a safe option for those managing an abortion or miscarriage in the United States, and has now become the most common method to terminate a pregnancy in the country.

 

In New York City, NYC Health + Hospitals helped support more than 2,000 medication abortions at little or no cost at the city’s 11 public hospitals last year alone. Should the law change after the seven-day pause, both the city’s hospital system and the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene will continue to make medication abortion accessible to all within the five boroughs by shifting to a misoprostol-only treatment regimen to comply with the law.

 

Currently, at least 29 percent of all women of reproductive age in the U.S. are already living in states where surgical abortions are virtually unavailable, but banning mifepristone would effectively reduce medication abortion options for approximately 40 million women nationwide.

 

Those looking for more information on abortion providers, payment support, and additional resources available in New York City can visit the city’s abortion access webpage. 

United States Settles Fair Housing Act Lawsuit Against Artimus Construction For Failure To Construct Apartments Accessible To Persons With Disabilities

 

 Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced today that the United States has settled a federal Fair Housing Act (“FHA”) lawsuit against ARTIMUS CONSTRUCTION, INC. (“ARTIMUS”).  Under the settlement, ARTIMUS has agreed to make retrofits at rental buildings in Harlem and Chelsea, named Susan’s Court and Chelsea Park, respectively.  ARTIMUS also agreed to provide $75,000 to compensate aggrieved persons and pay a $5,000 civil penalty.  Additionally, ARTIMUS agreed to establish procedures to survey four additional properties, two in Manhattan and two in Queens, to improve accessibility and agreed to ensure that its future residential development projects will comply with the accessibility requirements of the FHA.  The settlement was approved today by U.S. District Judge Paul A. Engelmayer. 

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “This Office has brought multiple suits to address the failure of real estate developers to comply with the Fair Housing Act, and we will continue to ensure that New York City’s residential housing market is open to everyone, including people with disabilities.  We appreciate Artimus’s cooperation in remedying the inaccessible conditions in their buildings.”

According to the allegations in the complaint and the settlement approved today:

The FHA’s accessible design and construction provisions require multifamily housing complexes constructed after January 1991 to have basic features accessible to persons with disabilities.  The inaccessible conditions at ARTIMUS’s rental buildings included excessively high thresholds at building entrances and entrances to common use areas, common use bathrooms that lack grab bars and pipe insulation, excessively high thresholds at entrances to individual apartments and within the apartments, and bathrooms in individual apartments that lack sufficient clear floor space for people who use wheelchairs.  These features in the common use areas of ARTIMUS’s buildings, as well as in the buildings’ apartment interiors, did not meet the specifications set forth in the Fair Housing Accessibility Guidelines, Design Guidelines for Accessible/Adaptable Dwellings.

Under the settlement, ARTIMUS agreed to make retrofits to the public and common use areas as well as the individual units at the Chelsea Park and Susan’s Court buildings to improve accessibility.  The settlement also requires ARTIMUS to establish procedures to ensure FHA compliance at its future development projects, including to retain an FHA compliance consultant to assess the design documents and conduct site visits to identify non-compliant conditions.  In addition, ARTIMUS agreed to institute policies and training to ensure that its employees and agents will comply with the FHA’s accessibility requirements.

Finally, the settlement requires ARTIMUS to provide $75,000 to compensate aggrieved persons.  Aggrieved persons may be entitled to monetary compensation from the fund created through today’s settlement.  Aggrieved individuals may include those who:

• Were discouraged from living at ARTIMUS’s rental buildings because of the lack of accessible features;
• Have been hurt in any way by the lack of accessible features at ARTIMUS’s rental buildings;
• Paid to have an apartment at one of ARTIMUS’s rental buildings made more accessible to persons with disabilities; or
• Otherwise were discriminated against on the basis of disability at one of ARTIMUS’s rental buildings as a result of inaccessible design and construction.

The settlement with ARTIMUS is the 18th settlement reached by this Office with developers and architects to remedy inaccessible housing in this District, including suits against The Durst Organization, Glenwood Management, Silverstein Properties, Related Companies, and Atlantic Development.

Any individual who may be entitled to compensation can file a claim by using the Civil Rights Complaint Form available on the United States Attorney’s Office’s website https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdny/civil-rights or by sending a written claim to:

U.S. Attorney’s Office, Southern District of New York      

86 Chambers Street, 3rd Floor                      

New York, New York 10007      

Attention: Chief, Civil Rights Unit

WILLIAMS' STATEMENT ON THE EXPULSION OF TENNESSEE LEGISLATORS FOR PROTESTING GUN VIOLENCE

 

"The injustice we have seen in recent days in Tennessee comes at an intersection of American failures – structural racism, punishing protest, and a willingness to wash our hands in response to unending, unspeakable violence. 

"The backlash to this nonviolent act of civil disobedience, and who faced harshest consequences, shows it's never about the means of demonstration, but rather demonizing the identity and cause of those raising their voices. But protest is meant to disrupt. Protest is meant to draw attention to and drive change on systemic injustices. And in their initial act of protest, in spotlighting and condemning the racist, undemocratic response, these expelled public servants have achieved a great deal. 

"The initial ‘offense’ of these legislators was to demand action to prevent gun violence in the wake of yet another horrific shooting. It is my hope that by expressing dual outrage at conservatives’ inaction on guns and authoritarian reaction to being called out for it, we can direct our anger into progress."

Governor Hochul Updates New Yorkers on State's Progress Combating COVID-19

 

Governor Encourages New Yorkers to Keep Using the Tools to Protect Against and Treat COVID-19: Vaccines, Boosters, Testing and Treatment

 Governor Kathy Hochul today updated New Yorkers on the state's progress combating COVID-19 and outlined basic steps they can take to protect against the spread of viral respiratory infections.

"Despite the warmer weather ahead, New Yorkers must continue to be vigilant and use all available tools to keep themselves, their loved ones and their communities safe and healthy this spring," Governor Hochul said. "Get boosted and stay up to date on vaccine doses, be sure to test before gatherings or travel and if you test positive, talk to your doctor about potential treatment options."

Governor Hochul is urging New Yorkers to take common prevention measures — like staying up to date on vaccines and practicing proper hygiene — to protect from COVID-19. The Governor also continues to urge New Yorkers to get their bivalent COVID-19 vaccine boosters, which target both the original virus strain and circulating variants.

To schedule an appointment for a booster, New Yorkers should contact their local pharmacy, county health department, or healthcare provider; visit vaccines.gov; text their ZIP code to 438829, or call 1-800-232-0233 to find nearby locations.

The New York State Department of Health is continuing its 12-week COVID-19 campaign on television, social media and streaming services to encourage New Yorkers with underlying medical conditions to recognize the importance of getting and staying up-to-date with the recommended bivalent booster to avoid serious illness or death. These conditions including being 65 or older, pregnant, obese, diabetic, or suffering from heart or lung disease, or having a weakened immune system.

Ahead of the federal government's planned expiration for the COVID-19 public health emergency on May 11, New York State's COVID-19/vaccine news release will be issued weekly on Fridays until further notice. The latest COVID-19 and vaccine data will continue to be available 24/7 on the New York State Department of Health's online tracker.

Additionally, the state Department of Health is assessing changes to COVID data collection and reporting in collaboration with local health departments and health care providers, to alleviate the burden on providers and leverage other data sources to maintain its ability to monitor the state of the disease and health care delivery system capacity. The agency remains committed to responding to the COVID-19 threat and continues to encourage New Yorkers to use the tools to protect against and treat COVID-19: Vaccines, boosters, testing and treatment.

The weekly COVID-19 data is summarized below:

• 7-Day Average Cases Per 100k - 4.08
• Total Positive Cases Over Last 7 Days - 5,577
• Test Results Reported Over Last 7 Days - 291,763
• 7- Day Average Patient Hospitalization - 977
• 7- Day Average Patients Newly Admitted - 134
• 7-Day Average Patients in ICU - 108
• 7-Day Average Patients in ICU with Intubation - 47
• New deaths reported by healthcare facilities through HERDS over last 7 days - 61
• Total deaths reported by healthcare facilities through HERDS - 62,273

The Health Electronic Response Data System is a New York State Department of Health data source that collects confirmed data as reported by hospitals, nursing homes and adult care facilities only.

• Total deaths reported to and compiled by the CDC - 79,272

This daily COVID-19 provisional death certificate data reported by the Department of Health and New York City to the CDC includes those who died in any location, including hospitals, nursing homes, adult care facilities, at home, in hospice and other settings.

• Total vaccine doses administered - 43,942,146
• Total vaccine doses administered over past 7 days - 17,996
• Percent of New Yorkers ages 18 and older with completed primary vaccine series - 85.6%
• Percent of New Yorkers ages 18 and older with completed primary vaccine series (CDC) - 90.8%
• Percent of New Yorkers ages 18 and older who are up to date - 16.4%
• Percent of New Yorkers ages 12-17 with completed primary vaccine series - 74.7%
• Percent of New Yorkers ages 12-17 with completed primary vaccine series (CDC) - 76.4%
• Percent of New Yorkers ages 12-17 who are up to date - 6.7%
• Percent of New Yorkers ages 5-11 with completed primary vaccine series - 40.2%
• Percent of New Yorkers ages 5-11 with completed primary vaccine series (CDC) - 41.1%
• Percent of New Yorkers ages 5-11 who are up to date - 4.0%
• Percent of New Yorkers ages 0-4 with completed primary vaccine series - 8.0%
• Percent of New Yorkers ages 0-4 who are up to date - 8.0%
• Percent of all New Yorkers with completed primary vaccine series - 76.6%
• Percent of all New Yorkers with completed primary vaccine series (CDC) - 80.9%
• Percent of all New Yorkers who are up to date - 14.2%

Each region's 7-day average of cases per 100,000 population as of Thursday, April 6th:

Region	7-day average, cases per 100k
Capital Region	4.36
Central New York	5.07
Finger Lakes	5.14
Long Island	4.34
Mid-Hudson	5.40
Mohawk Valley	3.12
New York City	3.39
North Country	4.16
Southern Tier	4.24
Western New York	4.03
Statewide	4.08

Over the past seven days, 5,577 New Yorkers tested positive for COVID-19 in New York State, bringing the total to 6,660,543.

New Yorkers looking to schedule vaccine appointments for 5-to-11-year-old children are encouraged to contact their child's pediatrician, family physician, county health departments, Federally Qualified Health Centers, rural health centers, or pharmacies that may be administering the vaccine for this age group. Parents and guardians can visit vaccines.gov, text their ZIP code to 438829, or call 1-800-232-0233 to find nearby locations. Make sure that the provider offers the Pfizer-BioNTechCOVID-19 vaccine, as the other COVID-19 vaccines are not yet authorized for this age group.

The Department of Health website has new information, frequently asked questions and answers, and resources specifically designed for parents and guardians of this age group.

Regional Vaccination Data by Provider Location

Cumulative totals of New Yorkers who have been vaccinated and boosted by geographic region:

 

Region	Completed Series	Up to date
Capital Region	911,289	229,940
Central New York	616,910	150,159
Finger Lakes	830,809	242,465
Long Island	2,026,176	379,767
Mid-Hudson	1,576,357	341,612
Mohawk Valley	312,174	70,346
New York City	7,487,153	1,021,607
North Country	285,669	63,504
Southern Tier	420,769	108,191
Western New York	914,819	232,453
Statewide	15,382,125	2,840,044

The COVID-19 Vaccine Tracker Dashboard is available to update New Yorkers on the distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine. The New York State Department of Health requires vaccinating facilities to report all COVID-19 vaccine administration data within 24 hours; the vaccine administration data on the dashboard is updated daily to reflect the most up-to-date metrics in the state's vaccination effort. New York State Department of Health-reported data from NYSIIS and CIR differs slightly from federally reported data, which is inclusive of federally administered doses and other minor differences. Both numbers are included in the release above.

Important Note: Today's report includes data from Friday, March 31 through Thursday, April 6.