“Abortion Access Hub” phone line launched in New York City

On Tuesday, city officials said that the city has started running a phone line that will help New Yorkers who want to get an abortion find qualified health care providers.

Residents of New York City who dial 877-NYC-AHUB will reach the city’s new “Abortion Access Hub,” a phone service whose operators will transfer callers to licensed, five boroughs-based abortion care providers, Mayor Eric Adams and the city’s health commissioner, Dr. Ashwin Vasan, said in a press release.

According to the press release, the hub will be operational from Monday through Saturday, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., and all calls made to the hotline will be kept “private and anonymous.”

The revelation made by Adams and Vasan occurred a little under five months after the Supreme Court had overturned Roe v. Wade, so putting an end to the constitutional right to have an abortion.

“The Dobbs decision may have been the Supreme Court’s latest attack on human rights and health care, but New York City will continue to be a safe haven for anyone seeking to access a safe, legal abortion,” Adams said in a statement. “New York City will continue to respect, protect, and fulfill the core tenets of our fundamental right to choose, and will fight to ensure quality, affordable health care is accessible to all those who seek an abortion.”

According to the statement, the personnel of the hub “will include employees who are multilingual in English and Spanish,” and in addition to those two languages, callers will also have access to the nine most common languages as well as American Sign Language. “Training on customer service, confidentiality, sexual and reproductive justice, and services for all genders” was written in the announcement.

“Callers will be asked about their needs and preferences, such as preferred day of the week, location, and interest in medication abortion, as well as whether they need assistance with cost or insurance,” the release said.

“If financial assistance is needed in order to obtain an abortion, navigators will connect people seeking care to clinical partners to facilitate resources, including financial support for the procedure, transportation and/or lodging,” the release added.

Vasan said in his own statement that the municipality would “not stand by quietly when human rights are at danger.”

“Our city is a safe haven for so many, and we are proud to be the first in the nation to offer this type of service to people simply exercising their basic rights over their bodies and their health,” Vasan said. “When people’s liberties are threatened, our city will always stand on the side of health, human rights, justice, and care for those in need.”