Earlier today, Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner signed into law Senate Bill 1564. The new law provides an important amendment to the Illinois Health Care Right of Conscience Act, ensuring that patients get all the information they need in order to make the best decisions about their health care treatment. During the advocacy advancing the new law, legislators heard from patients who were denied this critical information, placing their health at risk.
The following can be attributed to Lorie Chaiten, Director of the ACLU of Illinois Reproductive Rights Project:
Governor Bruce Rauner has taken an important step to protect patients in Illinois. The new law carefully balances the needs of patients to get complete information about their medical condition with the ability of health care providers to refuse health care services to which they have a religious or conscience objection. Not surprising, a huge majority of Illinois voters wanted the Health Care Right of Conscience Act balanced in order to include the interests of the patient. That is precisely what this new law does.
When Illinois patients go into an exam room, they need no longer worry that they are being denied medical information based on their health care provider's religious beliefs. This is a good measure for all Illinois residents.
