Christians take Illinois government to court over laws forcing them to fund abortion 

Christians are suing Illinois for forcing taxpayers to fund abortions through healthcare insurance.  

The lawsuit, filed Wednesday by the Thomas More Society, claims Illinois is violating the First and Fourteenth Amendments by denying religious exemptions to individuals or groups who find abortion morally abhorrent.  

“For Christians and many other pro-life advocates, Illinois’ abortion-coverage mandate is fundamentally opposed to their religious beliefs and runs roughshod over their constitutionally protected conscience rights,” Peter Breen, executive vice president of the Thomas More Society, said in a press release. “Gov. J.B. Pritzker and his administration [have] shown little-to-no regard for the rights of those who believe that all human life is worth protecting.  

“There’s no reason for pro-life individuals and organizations to be denied the option to choose an insurance policy that exempts them from covering others’ elective abortions.” 

The lawsuit is being brought by a coalition of Christian college students, church leaders, private school administrators and business owners who allege Pritzker, the Illinois attorney general and the Illinois Department of Insurance are violating their religious rights. 

“Compulsory abortion-coverage laws provide no exceptions or accommodations for employers or individuals who object to abortion on religious or moral grounds, not even for churches,” the lawsuit reads.  

“Illinois residents who oppose abortion have no way of obtaining state-regulated health insurance that excludes abortion coverage, forcing many of them to choose between paying for other people’s elective abortions with their premiums or forgoing health insurance entirely.”  

In January 2023, following the overturning of Roe v. Wade, Pritzker signed a bill cementing abortion and “gender affirming care” into state law.  

“Here in Illinois, we hold certain ideals: abortion is health care. A medical decision should be made between a patient and their doctor – no one else,” the governor said. “I made a promise that Illinois would remain a beacon of hope and an island for reproductive justice for all who seek it. This bill fulfills that promise.”  

Despite claiming to be a “beacon of hope,” Illinois government treats abortion like something worth hiding, since it allows minors to obtain them without even informing their parents.  

According to the ACLU of Illinois, clinics are not required to contact parents or guardians when minors seek abortion services.  

It adds, “Illinois Medicaid and most private health insurance plans are required to cover abortion care.”  

Earlier this year, state lawmakers even tried to enact a tax credit for people who move to Illinois seeking abortion or “gender-affirming” care.  

However, Christians have made it clear they want nothing to do with such activity.  

“If billionaire Gov. J.B. Pritzker wants to pay for abortions in his state out of the generosity of his heart, that can be his choice. Instead, Pritzker and state officials have manipulated and supported a law to force all Illinois residents to cover his choice of abortion for them,” said Kirstan Hawkins, president of Students for Life of America, one of the plaintiffs.  

“Students for Life of America’s team members and supporters in Illinois should not be forced to violate our consciences just because the abortion lobby and its cheerleaders like the governor have moved from ‘choice’ to coercion.”