Illinois House passes bill ensuring access to medication abortion amid uncertainty with Trump's FDA

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WAND) — A plan moving in Springfield would shield healthcare providers from being punished for prescribing medication abortion or any other reproductive healthcare medication for their patients.

Rep. Dagmara Avelar (D-Chicago) said Project 2025 has called for the Trump administration to revoke FDA approval for medication abortion drugs, and Illinois should not wait to react.

"With federal protections under constant attack, safeguarding abortion medication in Illinois is essential to preserve women's personal freedoms and ensure people can make decisions about their bodies without interference," Avelar said. "Locking in these protections maintains that a woman has absolute autonomy of her body."

The legislation would allow healthcare providers to prescribe medication abortion as long as it is approved by the World Health Organization.

"We have to stop this fort of breaking down all the safety mechanisms we have around abortion," said Rep. Bill Hauter (R-Morton). "There has to be some safety mechanisms, whether it be in the abortion clinic or it would be with abortion medications."

For full transparency, Hauter's wife runs an anti-abortion pregnancy center.

House Bill 3637 passed out of the House on a 67-39 vote. It now moves to the Senate for further consideration.