Canty Reproductive Health Records Privacy Act Passes House

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — With some states increasingly hostile toward bodily autonomy, state Rep. Mary Beth Canty, D-Arlington Heights, is fighting to keep personal health information private with the Reproductive Health Records Privacy Act to limit abortion-related medical information from crossing state lines. 

On Thursday, this legislation passed the House and will soon be heard in the Senate.

“With the right to choose increasingly under attack from a radical federal government that is stripping away bodily autonomy protections, Illinois is taking the lead on ensuring abortion access is preserved,” Canty said. “That’s a responsibility we should be proud to carry, and we owe it to thousands of people not just to provide the reproductive healthcare they need, but to keep their information private.”

To help keep abortion records safe, the Reproductive Health Records Privacy Act requires entities that facilitate the electronic exchange of health information, or health information exchanges, to:

• Limit user access to systems containing abortion-related medical information,
• Refrain from sharing this information across state lines,
• Technically segregate information related to abortion services from the rest of a patient’s record, and
• Create the means to automatically disable access to segregated information for out-of-state entities.

The bill also empowers the Attorney General to enforce these requirements with civil penalties, and for private causes of action to be taken by patients who have had their right to privacy violated.

“Rights are preserved by proactive legislating. Prior to Roe v. Wade being overturned, Illinois passed the Reproductive Health Act, which eliminated trigger laws and safeguarded the right to an abortion,” Canty said. “I am fighting to create vital protections before thousands of patients are faced with concerted efforts from hostile state governments and law enforcement agencies to strip away their privacy and punish them for getting the healthcare they need.”