SPRINGFIELD â The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has launched an investigation to determine whether Illinois has violated federal law by enacting and enforcing the 2019 Reproductive Health Act which, among other things, requires certain health insurance plans to cover abortion services.
In a letter dated Jan. 19, which was the last full day of the Trump administration, HHSâs Office of Civil Rights notified the Chicago-based Thomas More Society that it had received a complaint the group filed in October 2019 and had agreed to open an investigation to determine if certain portions of the act violate federal law.
Specifically, the letter stated that HHSâs Office of Civil Rights âis investigating whether the state of Illinois, through its Department of Insurance and Department of Central Management Services, is discriminating against health plan issuers and plans that would offer health coverage that limited or excluded abortion coverage but for the Re
By Peter Hancock & Capitol News Illinois
• Jan 26, 2021
Peter Breen, a former state representative and vice president and senior counsel of the Thomas More Society, speaks during a news event in Chicago after Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed the Reproductive Health Act in 2019. The Society is challenging the legality of an abortion coverage mandate in the law.
Credit Capitol News Illinois file photo by Rebecca Anzel
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has launched an investigation to determine whether Illinois has violated federal law by enacting and enforcing the 2019 Reproductive Health Act which, among other things, requires certain health insurance plans to cover abortion services.
HHS launches probe into Illinois abortion law
Complaint was filed by law firm that focuses on religious freedom issues
By Peter Hancock
Capitol News Illinois
SPRINGFIELD – The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has launched an investigation to determine whether Illinois has violated federal law by enacting and enforcing the 2019 Reproductive Health Act which, among other things, requires certain health insurance plans to cover abortion services.
In a letter dated Jan. 19, which was the last full day of the Trump administration, HHS’s Office of Civil Rights notified the Chicago-based Thomas More Society that it had received a complaint the group filed in October 2019 and had agreed to open an investigation to determine if certain portions of the act violate federal law.
Illinois Nurses Association files grievance against state, IDOC for hiring subcontractors
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – The union representing 3,600 nurses across Illinois has filed a formal complaint against the state and the Department of Corrections. This comes after IDOC hired subcontractors to fill roles that were vacant for months during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Illinois Nurses Association says that decision left many union members out of the equation.
The Department of Central Management Services contacted INA members about this change on December 11. Within a week, contracted nurses were already in IDOC facilities. The union submitted their complaint on December 16 on behalf of registered nurses working in the facilities. They believe the state bypassed their collective bargaining agreement by hiring the subcontractors.