The New York Abortion Access Fund, an all-volunteer organization that provides funds for women who can't afford the abortions they need, is going broke, literally. In recent months, we have received a record number of calls from low-income women and health clinics representing them asking for our help to pay for their abortions and our eight-woman board is struggling to raise funds fast enough to keep up with the demand. Last week, NYAAF's assets dipped below $3000. If current trends continue, as we suspect they will, that may not last through the end of the month.

Since its inception in 2001, NYAAF has given out over $100,000, nearly half of it in the last year alone. We suspect two factors have led to the dramatic increase in requests for our funding. First, our visibility has increased. Though NYAAF began as New York City's abortion fund, it is also one of few resources in the state for low-income women who need but cannot afford an abortion. Over the past year, NYAAF has reached out to health care providers beyond the five boroughs, asking abortion clinics throughout the state of New York not to turn away patients who lack the funds for their procedures, but to call us instead. The result has led to greater access to abortion services for low-income women outside of New York City. It also means we are giving out more money than ever before.

The second, and considerably more dramatic, factor driving women to call NYAAF is the global economic downturn. The Associated Press reported recently that financial troubles make it more difficult for women to purchase birth control to avoid unintended pregnancies and to obtain timely abortions if they do become pregnant. Not having enough money means women facing unintended pregnancies wait longer to have abortions as they scrounge to raise funds. And waiting longer means more complicated, more expensive procedures and an even greater need for funds like NYAAF. 

Indeed, the women and clinic staff we speak to each week cite fundraising as a major barrier to booking appointments for earlier and less expensive procedures. Consequently, the number of women calling us in their 22nd, 23rd and even 24th week of pregnancy has increased. While helping women obtain later term procedures is not new for NYAAF-New York has long served as a safe haven for women seeking abortions from other states with more restrictive abortion policies-these procedures are expensive and, along with an overall increase in requests for NYAAF assistance, have rapidly drained our funds.  

For those of us fielding calls from women and clinics, this frustrating situation is heartbreaking. The longer it takes a woman to secure funding, the more expensive the procedure becomes and the fewer women we are able to help. The cost of a procedure increases dramatically with each passing week, ranging from a couple hundred dollars for an early, medical abortion to several thousand dollars to terminate a pregnancy nearing the legal limit. After twenty weeks, the cost of an abortion rises even more quickly: the difference between a procedure done at 22 weeks versus 23 can be a thousand dollars.  

At NYAAF, our philosophy is simple. We aim to pledge money to clinics as quickly as possible to ensure that women are able to keep their earliest appointments and receive the safest and most affordable care available. We maximize our funds by working directly with clinics, negotiating discounts and payment plans for low-income women and matching eligible women to public assistance. In the last year, we helped 77 women pay for their abortions. Others we were able to help apply for emergency Medicaid, assistance available in New York but not all of our neighboring states. 

The economic downturn threatens to wipe out our fund and pressures women all over the country to seek later abortions. Communities need to invest in local grassroots abortion funds like NYAAF and Americans nationwide need to pressure the Obama administration to repeal the Hyde Amendment, which prohibits federal funding for abortion. Those of us on the frontlines of abortion funding can report: early funding makes all the difference.