Anti-abortion pregnancy centers can be penalized by the Illinois attorney general if they use deceptive practices or misinformation to interfere with patients seeking abortion care under a measure Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed into law Thursday.
“Women need access to comprehensive, fact-based health care when making critical decision(s) about their own health — not manipulation or misinformation from politically motivated, nonmedical actors,” Pritzker said in a statement after he signed the bill.
Under the law, clinics are subject to injunctive action and a financial penalty of up to $50,000 under the state’s Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act if they are found to be dissuading “pregnant persons from considering abortion care through deceptive, fraudulent, and misleading information and practices.”
The bill signing was quickly followed by a federal lawsuit from the conservative Chicago nonprofit law firm Thomas More Society that argued the new law infringes on individuals’ First Amendment rights.
“This is a blatant attempt to chill and silence pro-life speech under the guise of consumer protections,” Peter Breen, executive vice president and head of litigation for the organization, said in a news release. “Pregnancy help ministries provide real options and assistance to women and families in need, but instead of the praise they deserve, pro-abortion-rights politicians are targeting these ministries with $50,000 fines and injunctions solely because of their pro-life viewpoint.”
The lawsuit asks for a temporary restraining order and permanent injunction against the law.
Pritzker’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the lawsuit.
Illinois legislators passed the measure this spring as part of efforts to shore up abortion rights in Illinois following the U.S. Supreme Court decision last year overturning Roe v. Wade which for half a century granted abortion access nationwide with limited exceptions.
Since that ruling, many Midwestern states have restricted abortion access while Illinois has maintained strong reproductive rights protections. Abortion providers have predicted that 20,000 to 30,000 additional patients will be crossing state lines each year to terminate a pregnancy in Illinois, up two to three times the number of patients before Roe was overturned.
Attorney General Kwame Raoul issued a release Thursday saying crisis pregnancy centers go to great lengths to deceive people seeking abortion care.
“Patients report going to crisis pregnancy centers — sometimes even receiving exams and ultrasounds — thinking they were visiting a clinic that offers the full range of reproductive care,” he said.
Eric Scheidler, president of the Illinois based Pro-Life Action League, said in an email following Thursday’s bill signing that “If you’re a poor woman in Illinois facing an untimely pregnancy, J.B. Pritzker and the Democrats want you to have only one option: abortion.”
“But this attack on the welfare of poor women and the civil rights of pro-life advocates will not stand. It is patently unconstitutional, and we’re going to fight it in court—and win,” Scheidler said.
After the measure passed in May, Susan Barrett, executive director of Aid for Women, a center with several Illinois locations including one in the Loop, denied that any deceptive practices are employed to steer women away from abortion.
“I mean, sometimes people make mistakes but we’re very clear even on the phone about who we are and what services we provide,” Barrett said.
Chicago Tribune’s Jeremy Gorner contributed.
