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Make the Reproductive Health & Access Act (HB 6205) the Law in Illinois!
Click HERE to find the contact information for your State Representative and tell her/him to "Vote Yes on HB 6205!"
Why is HB 6205 Needed? Because ...
· A 1975 Illinois law states that when Roe v. Wade is overturned or modified by the U.S. Supreme Court, abortion will again become illegal in Illinois;
· Some pharmacists and pharmacies refuse to fill prescriptions for birth control or emergency contraception “Plan B”;
· Illinois law prevents poor women and state employees from using their health care insurance plans to pay for basic reproductive health care services;
· Many Illinois students are forced to participate in religiously based and faulty “abstinence only until marriage” sexuality education that endangers the health and safety of young people;
· Decisions about abortion and birth control should be private – made between a woman and her doctor, not politicians!
The Reproductive Health & Access Act protects the right of every woman in Illinois to make her own decisions about abortion, birth control and reproductive health care. The Act addresses the need of individuals to have access to the information they need to make informed decisions. The Act respects the right of individuals to make the personal and private medical decisions which are best for themselves and their families.
The Reproductive Health and Access Act declares:
All individuals should have appropriate and necessary access to health care and services as a continuum of choices throughout their reproductive lives, including but not limited to:
Ø Prenatal care
Ø Adoption
Ø Contraceptive care, including timely access to emergency contraception
Ø Screening and treatment for sexually transmitted infections
Ø Pregnancy termination
Ø Comprehensive, factual & scientifically based sexuality education
The Reproductive Health & Access Act ensures choice, opportunity, access and equity by prohibiting government entities from:
Ø Denying or interfering with an individual’s right to use or refuse contraception;
Ø Denying or interfering with a pregnant woman’s right to bear a child;
Ø Denying or interfering with a pregnant woman’s right to terminate a pregnancy either prior to the viability of the fetus or when the abortion is necessary to protect the life or health of the pregnant woman;
Ø Requiring any woman to terminate pregnancy without her consent.
The Reproductive Health & Access Act Protects the fundamental rights created by Roe v. Wade.
Protects individuals from financial discrimination by ensuring that individuals eligible for state Medicaid assistance, or other state medical assistance, receive financial assistance for reproductive health care at least to the same extent as other comparable services.
Protects women’s health and safety by requiring that pregnancy terminations be performed in accordance with accepted standards of medical practice, by the method that, in the clinical judgment of the attending medical professional, will best serve the interests of the pregnant patient.
Protects young women’s and men’s health by requiring that Illinois public schools offer medically accurate, age appropriate, comprehensive sex education.
Protects both patients and health care professionals by allowing individual health care professionals to object to providing certain services while still ensuring that patients receive timely, accurate and complete information about the patient’s care options.
The following organizations support HB 6205*:
AIDS Foundation of Chicago
American Academy of Pediatrics – IL Chapter
American Association of University Women
American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois
Asian Human Services
Black Women for Reproductive Justice
Chicago Abortion Fund
Chicago Foundation for Women
Chicago Girls Coalition
Chicago Women’s Health Center
Citizen Action/Illinois
CAVDA – Citizens AIDS Project
DuPage Human Services Federation
The Hope Clinic for Women
Illinois Caucus for Adolescent Health
Illinois Choice Action Team
Illinois Coalition Against Sexual Assault
Illinois NOW
Illinois Maternal & Child Health Coalition
Illinois Society for Advanced Practice Nursing
Independent Voters of Illinois
League of Women Voters of Illinois
McHenry County Citizens for Choice
Midwest Access Project
Mujeres Latinas en Acción
NASW – IL Chapter
National Council of Jewish Women
Northwest Suburban Chapter of NOW
Open Door Clinic
Pediatric AIDS Chicago Prevention Initiative
Personal PAC
Physicians for Reproductive Health and Choice
Planned Parenthood of Illinois
Protestants for the Common Good
Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice
(*in formation)
How Can I Help Personal PAC to Ensure that HB 6205 Becomes the Law in Illinois?
It takes 60 votes in the House and 30 votes in the Senate to pass a bill in the Illinois Legislature. In order to pass HB 6205, we need every pro-choice person in Illinois to be involved in the contacting legislators about the importance of this bill. It needs to be a top priority in the voting booth and in Springfield. Every one of us is the difference between full reproductive health care in Illinois or a continuation of the successful right-wing attacks on abortion rights, birth control, emergency contraception and quality sex education.
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