Despite passing what Illinois Democratic Governor J.B. Pritzker bragged as the nation's most "progressive" abortion law in the country, state legislators believe the bill did not go far enough in promoting abortion access for children. According to the Catholic News Agency, "Illinois lawmakers have announced their intention to repeal the state’s parental notiication law for abortions for minors."
“I’m going to try to get this repeal bill done in veto session if we can. If not, I’m certainly going to go back at it in January,” Rep Emanuel Welch (D) said regarding House Bill 2467.
The bill would repeal a law which "requires that abortion providers notify the parents of a minor seeking an abortion at least 48 hours before the scheduled abortion, except in certain cases where the minor could not notify a family member."
The American Civil Liberties Union praised the move, saying, "We need to trust youth in our state to make the health care decisions, without forcing them to risk their health and safety."
If the repeal were to happen, Illinois would join Vermont in allowing children under the age of 18 to obtain an abortion, no questions asked. Some proponents argue this is needed for cases like rape and sexual abuse. But according to the Illinois Health and Hospital Association, the state already allows children "certain exceptions to the notice requirement, including a judicial waiver of notice."
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The group also notes that children under the age of 16 are banned from donating blood, but children at least 16 years of age "may donate blood with written permission or authorization from a parent or guardian." Under the new law, these same children would be legally allowed to abort their child without written permission from a parent or guardian.
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