Late Sunday night, Illinois Democrats advanced legislation meant to protect abortion rights in case Roe v. Wade is overturned.
It would require insurance companies to cover abortions as part of pregnancy-related care and prevent abortion providers from being criminally charged, including for late-term abortions when medically necessary.
Sponsoring state Rep. Kelly Cassidy, a Democrat from Chicago, said it’s about trusting women and their doctors to make the best choice for their health and lifestyle.
“My abortion was medically necessary,” Cassidy told her colleagues. “It saved my life. It preserved my fertility. It allowed for the creation of my family, my children, who are my world.”
Republicans objected to both the substance of the legislation and the timing of the committee hearing.

State Rep. Terri Bryant, a Republican from Murphysboro, said she was not supposed to be at the Capitol Sunday, but rushed in when she found out about the vote.
“Senate Bill 25 was hijacked in order to make sure this was heard on a Sunday night, on a holiday weekend, at the ninth hour, in what I would really consider secrecy,” Bryant said.
Democrats argue the plan has been public for months. But the hearing was scheduled with just an hour’s notice.