The top aide to Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Wednesday called on lawmakers to back the legalization of gestational surrogacy, framing it as a continuation of LGBTQ rights like the legalization of same-sex marriage.
New York is one of the last states the bars commercial surrogacy, a practice that is opposed by the Catholic Church and has raised concerns among some advocates for the potential of women being taken advantage of in the process.
But Cuomo Secretary Melissa DeRosa in testimony on Wednesday pointed to the bill’s protections.
“The pending surrogacy proposal would include the strongest regulations and protections in the nation for people who chose to serve as gestational surrogates, addressing the rightful concerns of women’s rights advocates who want to be certain that this new law would not result in the exploitation of women,” she said.
DeRosa called the laws outlawing surrogacy “antiquated” that can bar LGBTQ couples and couples having trouble conceiving.
“This administration has made it a priority to fight for women and families with fertility issues, including enacting a new policy as part of this year’s budget that requires large group insurers to cover the cost of IVF and large, small, and individual insurance providers to cover egg-freezing for women with certain health conditions,” she said. “And we believe strongly that women should have the right to control their own reproductive health choices – as demonstrated by our push for the Reproductive Health Act, which we successfully enacted this year.”