The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services determined Wednesday that Illinois officials are violating federal law by forcing pregnancy centers to refer women for an abortion.
Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys represent the National Institute of Family and Life Advocates and three Illinois pregnancy centers in the eight-year-old case National Institute of Family and Life Advocates v. Treto. After the attorneys asked HHS to investigate this matter, the agency sent a “notice of violation” to Illinois officials informing them that their state law violates the Weldon and Coats-Snowe Amendments. Those are federal conscience clauses that protect pro-life health care professionals from being forced to refer women for an abortion.
“No one should be forced to express a message that violates their convictions, and compelling people to refer others for abortions does that,” said ADF Senior Counsel Erin Hawley, vice president of the ADF Center for Life and Regulatory Practice. “The U.S. Supreme Court held in NIFLA v. Becerra that forcing people to promote abortion is unconstitutional. We applaud HHS’ determination that pro-life pregnancy centers must be free to continue their life-affirming work without fear of government punishment.”
NIFLA and the pregnancy centers have been challenging Illinois laws that violate their deeply held beliefs about protecting unborn life. In April 2025, an Illinois district court rightly ruled that a provision of the state’s law that forces pro-life pregnancy centers to promote abortion and its supposed “benefits” is unconstitutional, compelled speech. But the court also ruled that a provision that forces pregnancy centers to refer pregnant women for an abortion is not a violation of their speech and conscience rights, prompting ADF attorneys to appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit.
“Based on the plain language of the Weldon and Coats-Snowe Amendments, Illinois is prohibited from discriminating against a health care entity on the basis that the entity does not ‘refer for abortion’ or ‘make arrangements for’ abortion or referral for abortion,” HHS determined in its “notice of violation” to Illinois officials.
