As Democrats meet in Chicago, Illinois' role in abortion access is in the spotlight

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At Hope Clinic in Granite City, Ill., Dr. Erin King and her staff have rearranged the waiting room for patients who’ve been traveling here from across the country. There are spaces for children to play and for families to relax or watch TV.

“Most of our patients have kids, and so if they're able to come, they can bring their kids with them,” King says.

There’s also a supply closet stocked with diapers, snacks and hygiene supplies that patients and their families might need during their trip. King describes it as a “little, mini 7-Eleven — but all free.”

Democrats are holding their nominating convention this week in Illinois, a state that’s become a critical access point for patients seeking abortion since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade just over two years ago. Abortion is a major campaign issue for Democrats this year, and the party is trying to remind voters that former President Donald Trump and the GOP are responsible for new abortion restrictions that have taken effect around the country.

Hope Clinic is in western Illinois — near the border with Missouri, where most or all abortions are now illegal. The situation is similar for most of Illinois’ neighboring states. In recent years, Hope and other clinics across Illinois have increased hours and staffing to accommodate an influx of patients from outside the state.

But getting here often isn’t easy, King says. She remembers a patient who faced one obstacle after another.

“She had a partner that was trying to block her from coming. She had child care issues — which kind of was wrapped up in the partner, because he was also the person she needed to care for her children. Her work was not giving her time off,” King said. “And then on top of that, she felt like she couldn't get the money together.”

Getting the money together is a major challenge for many patients. The Guttmacher Institute, a research group that supports abortion rights, says that nationwide, patients are traveling longer distances and in greater numbers as a result of the Supreme Court ruling.

Megan Jeyifo is executive director of the Chicago Abortion Fund, which helps with the cost of abortion and related travel for patients across the Midwest and beyond.

“It’s changed everything,” she said of the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision. It triggered what she describes as a “mind-boggling” increase in requests for help.

“The sheer scale is not like anything we could have imagined,” Jeyifo explained.

The fund gets hundreds of calls each week, with call volumes up 80% in just the last year.

As Illinois hosts the Democratic convention in Chicago, the issue of abortion — and the state’s role as a hub for patients seeking the procedure — will be on display.

Prior to the Dobbs decision, Illinois’ Democratic-controlled state government repealed existing abortion restrictions and passed laws designed to protect access, including shielding providers and patients from prosecution in other states.

For example, says Gov. JB Pritzker, under state law, Illinois officials will not release records from the state’s tollways to out-of-state prosecutors seeking information about patient travel.

“That’s how deep we’ve gotten into protecting women who come here because Illinois is an oasis.” Pritzker said in an interview with NPR. “People are coming from all over the country, it seems, to exercise their rights and know that they will be protected if they come to our state.”

More than Roe

But some abortion rights activists in Illinois like would like to see Democrats do more — and move beyond the promise of the Biden-Harris administration to “restore” or “codify” Roe v. Wade in federal law.

As vice president, and now as the party’s presidential nominee, Harris has promoted that position, and has taken a leading role in the administration on abortion rights.

Dr. Colleen McNicholas, an Illinois abortion provider, has met twice — once in person and once virtually — with the vice president to discuss the state of abortion access.

“We are at a place where we have some real opportunity to let go of the system that we were handcuffed to before and were forced to defend — which is the Roe framework — and really build back something better,” McNicholas says.

McNicholas is a co-author of the “Abortion Justice Now” memo, which describes Roe as inadequate.

The memo notes that under Roe, states were permitted to set gestational limits on abortion — particularly later in pregnancy — something the authors of the memo oppose. They’ve also called for removing limits on federal funding for abortion for low-income people.

Illinois Rep. Robin Kelly, a former chair of the state Democratic Party, says the first priority should be restoring the rights that were lost with the Dobbs decision.

“You know what [Vice President] Harris seems to be saying: We initially want to get back to Roe; let’s do that first. Let’s make sure we are back to where we were,” Kelly says. “Then let’s look at what else we need to do.”

Most Americans opposed overturning Roe v Wade. But many voters support some restrictions on abortion later in pregnancy.

Kelly says Democrats should focus on winning the presidency and down-ticket races.

“At the end of the day, even people that want more, they are not gonna get the more out of Donald Trump,” Kelly says.

At Hope Clinic, Dr. Erin King says she’s proud of what she and other abortion providers in Illinois have been able to accomplish in the past couple of years.

“Illinois is a great example that if you are purposeful and put things in place to protect patients and protect access, you can be a safe haven, or a beacon, or a place for patients to come to,” King says. “But this is not a long-term solution. This is a Band-Aid on a much bigger issue.”

As Democrats gather in Chicago, Planned Parenthood will be providing medication abortion — and vasectomies — at a mobile health unit set up not far from the convention center, and highlighting the ways providers in Illinois have been adapting to the increasingly challenging landscape around them.

NPR's Megan Lim contributed to this story.