New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (Screenshot)

(CNSNews.com) - New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed into law a bill on Tuesday that legalizes late-term abortion timed to coincide with the 46th anniversary of Roe v. Wade – the Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion.



The Reproductive Health Act (S.240) also allows non-doctors to perform abortions.



Prior to signing the bill, Cuomo told supporters, “Today is sweet, because in a few minutes, I will sign this bill, and another New York national precedent will be established, the most aggressive women’s equality platform in the nation is going to be a law in this state, and that’s the way it should be.”



He accused the Trump administration of trying to roll back women’s rights 50 years and called for a constitutional amendment on abortion, “so no governor, no legislator, no political swing can ever jeopardize a woman’s right to control her own body in this state.”



"In the face of a federal government intent on rolling back Roe v. Wade and women's reproductive rights, I promised that we would pass this critical legislation within the first 30 days of the new session - and we got it done," Cuomo said in a statement on his website.



"Today we are taking a giant step forward in the hard-fought battle to ensure a woman's right to make her own decisions about her own personal health, including the ability to access an abortion. With the signing of this bill, we are sending a clear message that whatever happens in Washington, women in New York will always have the fundamental right to control their own body," Cuomo said.



Americans United for Life issued a statement, saying by signing the bill, Cuomo “strips away all patient protections from vulnerable women and children and ignores the state’s interest in maintaining Supreme Court-approved health and safety regulations.”



“New York’s profoundly corrosive legislation is extreme,” Catherine Glenn Foster, president & CEO of Americans United for Life, said in a statement. “New York now permits non-physicians to perform abortions and de facto permits infanticide of the sort that notorious Philadelphia abortionist Kermit Gosnell was convicted only recently.”



“Planned Parenthood and other leading abortion advocates have for years claimed that abortion is healthcare,” said Steven H. Aden, chief legal officer and general counsel of Americans United for Life. “Why then are alleged advocates of healthcare legalizing the removal of physicians from the operating room and allowing optional surgical procedures to be conducted without state regulatory oversight?”



AUL said because of the New York law, “Abortion, a major surgical event, is now less regulated in New York than almost any medical procedure and is arguably less regulated than any New York City restaurant.”