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In June 2022, after the U.S. Supreme Court's decision
essentially overturning Roe vs. Wade, multiple states, including
several neighboring Illinois, restricted the procedure. Since
then, Illinois has seen an increase in out-of-state patients
coming to the Land of Lincoln for abortions.
According to numbers from the Illinois Department of Public
Health, nearly 17,000 people came from other states to Illinois
to terminate a pregnancy in 2022. That's more than 5,000 more
than the year before. In 2020, most abortions performed on those
from out of state came from Missouri and Indiana.
The Democratic majority in Illinois has made abortion more
accessible. In October, Gov. J.B. Pritzker pushed his Think Big
America plan, which advocates for abortion rights nationwide.
"This is a pivotal moment for our republic, that's why I am
proud to announce the launch of Think Big America, an
organization dedicated to safeguarding reproductive rights,"
Pritzker said.
Last summer, Pritzker's office announced a cross-agency
reproductive health care initiative that included $10 million
for a public hotline for abortion service navigation and $5
million in capital funding for reproductive health facilities.
State Rep. Brad Halbrook, R-Shelbyville, said this is more money
that the state is spending on people who do not live here.
"These numbers are alarming and I wish the state would do
something about this, but however they continue to incentivize
this," Halbrook said, "it is unfair to the taxpayers of Illinois
to first of all pay for abortions and secondly pay for folks
abortions from out of state."
Halbrook said the state is once again using its taxpayer funds
to help people who are not taxpayers of Illinois.
"The biggest issue is the amount of pressure it puts on the
budget, the budget is under a lot of strain for health care for
the people who are not here legally," Halbrook said. "I think
the budget pressure alone should give people pause to think
about this further."
Illinois has some of the least restrictions on abortion in the
nation, as the state no longer requires parental notification
for minors to terminate a pregnancy.
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