Illinois bishops file amicus brief in opposition of abortion referral mandate

The Catholic bishops of Illinois have filed a friend-of-the-court brief supporting pro-life medical professionals who could be forced to violate their conscience protections under a state law.

Key Takeaways:

• Illinois SB 1564 took effect in 2017 as part of the Illinois’ Health Care Right of Conscience Act (HCRCA), and required health care workers and pregnancy resource centers (PRCs) to “inform patients about all available medical options, including abortion and contraception,” tell patients about the so-called "benefits" of abortion, and make abortion referrals.

• A years-long legal battle has been taking place since then, and while a victory earlier this year prevented the state from forcing pro-life medical professionals from discussing the alleged "benefits" of abortion, the portion of the law requiring abortion referrals still stands.

• The Catholic bishops of Illinois join other religious groups in filing a friend-of-the-court brief in support of the efforts to overturn the mandatory abortion referral law.

The Backstory:

In 2016, Illinois passed SB 1564, which consisted of two amendments to the HCRCA. It required health care providers to discuss the "benefits" of abortion, as well as refer women to abortionists upon request. No conscience protections were in the amendments.

The Thomas More Society sued on behalf of Dr. Ronald Schroeder, 1st Way Pregnancy Support Services, and Pregnancy Aid South Suburbs to block both amendments.

Earlier this year, a judge agreed to block one of the amendments, but not the other — meaning pro-life health care professionals (including those at pro-life pregnancy resource centers and religious ministries) could still be forced to make referrals for abortion, violating their conscience rights.

“We welcome the court’s ruling striking down Illinois’ attempts to force our pro-life physicians and pregnancy centers to parrot pro-abortion talking points, in violation of their First Amendment rights — a victory we’ve fought for since this case began nearly a decade ago,” Thomas Olp, Thomas More Society Executive Vice President, said in a statement. “But we are greatly concerned that the court did not fully protect conscience rights, leaving our clients forced to compromise their deepest beliefs. We look forward to continuing this fight against the State of Illinois in the Seventh Circuit.”

The Details:

Cardinal Blase Cupich, Archbishop of Chicago, announced on X that the Catholic bishops of Illinois would be filing a friend-of-the-court brief in support of pro-life medical professionals, joining the Illinois Catholic Health Association, the Orthodox Church in America, and the Serbian Orthodox Diocese of New Gračanica-Midwestern America. The brief argued that the mandate violates protection for religious individuals against compelled speech.

"The Church’s pro-life mission is under attack in Illinois. The State is pushing an aggressive mandate seeking to punish healthcare workers who refuse to aid and abet abortion," Cupich tweeted. "The Catholic bishops of Illinois are standing side by side with these conscientious objectors to stop this inhumane mandate. Illinois’ mandate would force medical professionals who cannot participate in abortion for reasons of conscience to tell women about the supposed 'benefits' of abortion and refer them to abortion providers. If they refuse, they lose key legal protections."

He further explained that pro-life ministries in Illinois are "in the government's crosshairs" and that the law forces Catholics to potentially violate their religious beliefs.

"As Pope Francis once reminded us, 'every child who, rather than being born, is condemned unjustly to be aborted, bears the face of Jesus Christ.' We must never surrender to governing authorities who command us to say otherwise," he continued. "That’s why today, the Catholic bishops of Illinois filed a friend-of-the-court brief in National Institute of Family Life Advocates v. Treto, a lawsuit challenging Illinois’ assault on religious liberty."

The brief argues that free speech deserves the "highest protection available" — religious speech in particular — and Illinois is violating that right.

"Providing the highest level of First Amendment protection to religious institutions gives them the predictability they need to pursue their religious missions," the brief says, adding:

As relevant here, Illinois’s law burdens the Catholic Amici’s religious speech and exercise because the cooperation of an Illinois Catholic Health Association member with other healthcare entities engaged in immoral activities such as abortion could lead people to believe that such conduct is morally acceptable — causing those people to sin and producing scandal over the Church’s true teachings and public witness.

Giving religious speech the highest level of protection will thus ensure that the Catholic Amici can clearly define and defend Church teaching for all the faithful in Illinois.

The Context:

Illinois pro-abortion leaders have done their best to force pro-life pregnancy centers to speak favorably about abortion and refer clients for abortion while passing laws increasing access to abortion.

2016: The Healthcare Right of Conscience Act, signed into law by pro-abortion, Planned Parenthood-supporting Republican Governor Bruce Rauner, attempted to force pregnancy centers ideologically and missionally opposed to abortion to discuss its "benefits" with clients and to refer clients to abortion providers. In 2017, a federal judge upheld a preliminary injunction placed against the law by a lower court in 2016, saying, "It is clear that the amended act targets the free speech rights of people who have a specific viewpoint."

2017: Rauner signed HB 40 into law, requiring taxpayers to foot the bill for all abortions for those who qualify for state Medicaid. By 2018, abortions had increased in the state by nearly 1800%.

2021: The Youth Health and Safety Act "repeal[ed] the state’s Parental Notification of Abortion Act, enabling minors to obtain abortions without their parents’ knowledge."

2022: The Pregnancy Center Disclosure Act attempted to force pregnancy help centers to tell clients "on-site, and in any print and digital advertising materials, notice stating that the facility is not licensed as a medical facility by Illinois and has no licensed medical provider who provides or directly supervises the provision of services.” Yet, many pregnancy centers do have licensed medical providers on-site.

2023: Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker announced that $23 million taxpayer dollars would be directed to increase abortion access in the state.

2023: In July, an amendment (SB 1909) was added to the state’s Consumer Fraud & Deceptive Business Protection Act, specifically targeting pregnancy centers. As Live Action News reported:

This law sought to further dictate the speech of PRCs regarding abortion and claimed that explaining the risks of abortion and instead presenting other life-affirming options instead of abortion was somehow misinformation and deception. The amendment would also have allowed the Illinois Attorney General to begin investigations into PRC practices without any complaints of fraud or deception being provided, and the AG could potentially penalize PRCs, even to the point of shutting them down.

The same day the amendment was signed, the Thomas More Society, the National Institute of Family & Life Advocates, Women’s Help Services and Relevant Pregnancy Options Center, the Pro-Life Action League, and the Rockford Family Initiative all joined together and filed suit against the amendment.

Despite the fact that Pritzker insisted that the law was constitutional, AG Kwame Raoul agreed to a "permanent injunction forbidding enforcement of the act against the plaintiffs."

2025: Pritzker signed HB 3637 to keep the abortion pill legal regardless of its FDA status as well as HB 3709 to require the abortion pill to be available to students on state college campuses.

2026: A report indicates that $24 million or more will be directed to fund services including abortion in Illinois. The state has become an abortion destination.

The above is not an exhaustive list, yet it makes clear that the state of Illinois is invested in promoting abortion only — and bullying those who instead believe in offering life-affirming alternatives to women.

The Bottom Line:

Conscience protections in health care are vital, protecting medical professionals from being forced to violate their deeply-held beliefs. It is for that exact reason why similar efforts to those in Illinois have previously failed, such as in the NIFLA vs. Becerra Supreme Court decision, and hopefully, will fail again now.