A bill that would allow minors in Illinois to get an abortion without their parents’ or guardians’ knowledge now heads to the desk of Gov. J.B. Pritzker after clearing the state legislature.
The bill, known as the “Youth Health and Safety Act,” seeks to repeal Illinois’s long-standing Parental Notification of Abortion Act, which requires all abortion clinics in the state to notify an adult family member, including parent, grandparent, step-parent living in the same household, or a legal guardian, if a woman age 17 or younger wants to have an abortion. The notification is required for both medical and surgical abortions, and must be made within 48 hours before the procedure.
