Chicago expanding abortion access for residents of city, neighboring states

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot (D) on Monday announced that the city will continue to expand abortion access for residents and serve as a sanctuary for those coming from states in which abortion access could potentially be outlawed.

Lightfoot announced that the Chicago Department of Public Health has pledged to invest $500,000 that “will support access to reproductive healthcare for Chicagoans and patients seeking safe, legal care from neighboring states that have or ultimately will ban abortion if the Supreme Court decides to strike down Roe v. Wade, as outlined in the leaked decision.”

In addition to the investment, the city of Chicago has pledged to “create and maintain” the city as a safe haven for those it says are “unjustly denied the rights, privileges, immunities, resources and opportunities they deserve as human beings and residents of our city and country.”

According to Chicago’s newly announced, five-point “Justice for All” pledge, the city will also protect and increase access to reproductive, obstetric and gynecological health care for all patients regardless of their immigration status or place of residence. 

“Through this investment, my administration is reaffirming our commitment to ensure safe access for anyone seeking safe reproductive healthcare. That includes access to transportation, lodging, care, and, if necessary, safe and legal access to an abortion procedure,” Lightfoot said in a release. 

“All people, regardless of race, sex, age, income, or immigration status deserve to have access to healthcare, and that includes reproductive rights and the choice to decide over their own bodies,” she added. 

This comes after a draft of the Supreme Court’s opinion on Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization leaked last week and implied that the Supreme Court was poised to overturn Roe v. Wade, which has protected abortion at the federal level since 1973.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) also announced Tuesday that her state is creating a $35 million fund to support abortion providers, according to ABC7 New York.