In these times of quick fixes to all problems no matter how large, there are few organizations that have the staying power of the ACLU to defend the civil rights of the most vulnerable.
The RBF/ACLU of Illinois filed an amicus brief in a lawsuit, brought by three Illinois pharmacy corporations and two individual pharmacists, challenging an Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation administrative rule setting forth the circumstances in which pharmacies are obligated to dispense prescription contraceptives.
| Playing this video will place long-term YouTube and Google cookies on your computer.
Please see You Tube’s privacy statement on their website and Google’s privacy statement on theirs to learn more. To view the ACLU’s privacy statement, click here. |
The plaintiffs alleged that the rule violated various state and federal constitutional and statutory provisions, including the Illinois Health Care Right of Conscience Act. The trial court dismissed the case, and the Illinois Appellate Court affirmed the dismissal. The plaintiffs argued in their brief to the state Supreme Court that the rule should be struck down because it conflicted with rights protected by the Illinois Health Care Right of Conscience Act. In January 2008, we filed an amicus brief urging the court to reject plaintiffs’ challenge to the rule. We argued that plaintiffs’ expansive reading of the Health Care Right of Conscience Act as providing absolute protection for the conscience objections of healthcare workers, despite the impact such refusals would have on women seeking to access constitutionally-protected healthcare, was incorrect and inappropriate. In December 2008, the Illinois Supreme Court ruled that the claims were ripe and, without reaching the merits of the case, sent the matter back to the district court for further litigation. We continue to monitor the case in the trial court and consider any appropriate role that we might play.
