What Is Illinois House Bill 1464 and How Does It Impact Pro-life Work?
Illinois House of Representatives recently passed House Bill 1464. This bill is another step in the plan to increase access to abortion, not only for Illinois residents, but those in surrounding states. What is House Bill 1464 and how does it impact the abortion industry? Learn more about this recent bill, which is headed to the State Senate.
Caring Network is an Illinois non-profit organization aimed at eliminating the suffering from and desire for abortion in our state and beyond. With six pregnancy centers in the Chicagoland area, we provide free early pregnancy services to women and men who are susceptible to choosing abortion. Through our services and support, many feel empowered to choose life for their unborn children instead. Join us in fulfilling our mission to reach more women and save more lives by reaching out today.
House Bill 1464 – What Is It?
This bill, if enacted, would prohibit the state to take disciplinary action against a physician, nurse, or advanced practice physician for providing medical services related to an abortion. Currently, if a physician practices in another state and faces disciplinary action due to performing an abortion in that state, that would trigger potential disciplinary action in Illinois as well. Bill sponsor Rep. Maura Hirschauer, D-Batavia, summarized it this way to the Journal-Courier, “But as other states have moved to make abortion more difficult or outright illegal, the law would shield an Illinois doctor who is disciplined in one of those states for performing an abortion from facing the same discipline in Illinois.”
As surrounding states implement abortion regulations, this is a move to protect abortion providers within the state of Illinois, continuing to promote the state as a “safe haven” for those seeking abortion.
House Bill 1465 – What is the Impact?
Many women are already flocking to Illinois in pursuit of abortion, and the number is expected to rise. Brigid Leahy, Vice President of Public Policy at Planned Parenthood Illinois summarized, “Planned Parenthood has been planning to help with an influx of patients needing to travel to Illinois for reproductive health care access.” In fact, the same Journal-Courier article reported, “In January, a regional logistics center opened in a Planned Parenthood clinic in Fairview Heights that uses private funds to pay for travel and lodging arrangements (for women traveling from out of state). The center is operated by Planned Parenthood and the Granite City-based Hope Clinic for Women. As they begin to amp up their access to those pursuing abortion, so does Caring Network. It’s important that abortion alternatives are available and accessible to those who are traveling to Illinois from out of state.
House Bill 1665 – What’s Next?
This bill was passed by the Illinois House of Representatives and will be moving on to the Senate. If you would like to contact your Illinois Senator, you can find their information here.
Caring Network is expanding our reach across Illinois and continuing to offer compassionate care that saves lives. Regardless of what happens with legislation, our commitment remains the same – reach more women and save more lives. As more women come to the state of Illinois seeking abortion, we’ll be here to offer life-giving services, all at no cost. If you’d like to learn more about how to support our efforts, check out our Get Involved page. We wouldn’t be able to do this important work without the prayer, volunteering, and financial partnership of those in our community.
