November 25, 2024

Now, an unsustainable status quo remains: many abortion seekers from Florida must board a plane in order to get care, and providers in New York must secure the substantial resources and funding needed to continue to offer abortions — all while preparing for potential national threats to the procedure’s legality.

“Best case scenario is nothing gets worse,” said [Chelsea] Williams-Diggs, but added: “It’s still pretty freaking bad.”

November 17, 2024

The New York Abortion Access Fund helps cover the cost of abortions — and, if needed, travel or lodging expenses — for those who can’t afford them. The group has gained support from New York City, although it has to be reimbursed after paying for care, which can be a challenge, she added.

The group went from supporting about 400 New Yorkers and out-of-staters in need of abortions in 2020 to more than 2,500 people last year. Changes at the state level have contributed to increased demand, such as Florida’s decision to ban abortions after six weeks, which took effect in May, Williams-Diggs said.

November 4, 2024

“We have been completely failed. Our world crumbled, and the world of repro crumbled. There was no lifeboat. We’re just out here, a bunch of volunteers and a couple staff moving millions of dollars to get people basic healthcare. If that’s not radicalizing, I don’t know what is. I don’t believe our movement was ready [for the fall of Roe)], and I would say NYAAF wasn’t ready.”

August 22, 2024

Abortion is legal in New York, and over the years, the state has made significant strides to make it increasingly accessible to its most marginalized residents, as well as to the growing number of people traveling here for care. However, much work remains for New York to fully live up to its claim of being an access state and abortion safe haven. This article does not intend to minimize the persistent barriers—financial, logistical, and cultural—that many still face when trying to access care in New York. Instead, its purpose is to highlight the resources that exist to navigate those barriers and to ensure people are informed about them, so they can access the care they need and deserve.

August 7, 2024

There is an alarming disconnect between the agendas of national, well-funded abortion rights organizations and those of local abortion funds. In this moment of crisis, it’s more important than ever to uplift, center, and invest in local funds.

May 24, 2024

Fifty years ago, New York first opened its doors to people from across the U.S. who needed abortion care. Now, following the Supreme Court’s decision to gut Roe, numerous states have banned or severely restricted abortion care. In the face of this attack on basic reproductive rights, New York must once again be a leader in expanding care for its residents and anyone who needs it.

Even though abortion is legal in New York, people still face steep barriers trying to access abortion across the state. We talk about how to close those gaps and how to strengthen New York’s position as a leader when it comes to abortion rights with Allie Bohm, senior policy counsel for the NYCLU and Chelsea Williams-Diggs, Executive Director of the New York Abortion Access Fund.

January 24, 2024

Think so-called blue states, with Democratic lawmakers, are abortion safe havens? Pull up a chair and let’s talk. In this episode, Chelsea Williams-Diggs of the New York Abortion Access Fund joins Renee and Regina to talk about how even “liberal” governments need to do better for pregnant people.

January 17, 2024

With the battle over abortion rights raging in the United States at local, state, and national levels, we here in New York state cannot become complacent that access to abortion will always be guaranteed here. Chelsea Williams-Diggs of New York Abortion Access Fund and Allie Bohm of New York Civil Liberties Union to discuss the state of abortion access in New York state and their advocacy for the statewide Reproductive Freedom and Equity Fund.

October 24, 2023

“When we think about the people needing to travel and needing financial support, we’re thinking about Black and brown folks, immigrants, and a lot of those people have connections to new York…” - NYAAF Interim Executive Director, Chelsea Williams-Diggs

Thursday, July 20, 2023

"We recognize that abortion access... paying for someone's abortion won't fix every issue ... but it is a piece of liberation, it's a piece of social justice, it's a piece of reproductive justice, and it's important to be able to give back to folks." - NYAAF Interim Executive Director, Chelsea Williams-Diggs

By Sara Boboltz and Alanna Vagianos | June 24, 2023

“We are in a national crisis and abortion funds across the country are all feeling it,” Williams-Diggs told HuffPost. “It feels often like our broader movement — philanthropy, government — are not understanding the magnitude of this crisis. They’re not understanding just how bad things have gotten and, honestly, how bad things are going to continue to get.”

By Alison Durkee | June 24, 2023

In spite of increased donations post-Dobbs, abortion access organizations such as NYAAF are still struggling to keep up with increased demand.

By Alanna Vagianos | June 23, 2023

NYAAF is featured among abortion funds throughout the country for their role in the post-Dobbs abortion movement.

By Rachel Bluth and Maya Kaufman | June 23, 2023

“While New York’s Medicaid program covers abortion, Williams-Diggs said in an interview some providers do not accept Medicaid, and others only do so for patients early in their pregnancies. The average cost of a first-trimester abortion in New York is $600, Williams-Diggs said. In recent weeks, her organization has seen people later in their pregnancies be charged as much as $25,000 by private clinics.”

By Maya Kaufman and Hajah Bah | June 23, 2023

Our Interim Executive Director Chelsea Williams-Diggs discusses the cost barriers for abortion-seekers in New York State.

By Eleanor Laise | June 23, 2023

“Surgical abortion in New York, for example, generally starts around $600 for a first-trimester procedure, said the New York Abortion Access Fund’s Williams-Diggs, but can cost as much as $28,000 later in pregnancy.”

June 23, 2023

"When abortion is banned or restricted in one state, the entire country, the entire ecosystem of access and care feels it." - Chelsea

By Lola Fadulu | April 12, 2023

“The New York Abortion Access Fund, which pays clinics directly for low-income patients’ abortions, ‘immediately saw an influx of out-of-state callers’ after the Supreme Court’s ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization last June, said Chelsea Williams-Diggs, the organization’s interim executive director.”

By Claire Lampen | December 5, 2022

“Demand from states that have banned abortion has surged, and out-of-towners now comprise nearly half of the fund’s callers.”

By Ashley Wong and Lola Fadulu | May 13, 2022

“As of early May, the New York Abortion Access Fund had pledged about $350,000 this year to people seeking abortions, more than twice the $150,000 it had promised by this point last year.”