Illinois taxpayers will now be forced to pay for abortions under a new law signed Thursday by Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner, which mandates the procedure be covered under the state’s Medicaid programs and for all state government employees.

The new law, which was approved by the state legislature back in May, will go into effect barring a court order.

After signing the bill into law, Rauner said while he “respects those who believe abortion is morally wrong,” he believes all women should have the right to prematurely kill their unborn children if they decide it’s the best choice for them – even those who can’t afford to do so on their own.

“I do not think it’s fair to deny poor women the choice that wealthy women have.”



"I also believe that no woman should be forced to make a different decision than another woman would make purely based on her income," he added. "I believe that a woman living with limited financial means should not be put in the position where she has to choose something different than a woman of higher income would be able to choose."

Of course, what Rauner conveniently omits is that all women in Illinois – whether wealthy or poor – already had the “choice” to voluntarily terminate their pregnancies well before this new law came around. What they didn’t have, however, was the state-sanctioned ability to force other people, including those who morally oppose abortion as murder, to pay for it.

And it looks like Rauner's fellow Republicans in the state legislature aren't too happy about his decision to approve the new law, which he'd originally said he would veto.

“Taxpayers should not be forced to fund something as controversial and culturally divisive as abortions,” Republican state Senator Dan McConchie told the Chicago Tribune.



State Rep. David McSweeney, R-Barrington Hills, called Rauner a "failed governor" over the bill.



Pro-life group Illinois Right to Life estimates the new law will result in about 12,000 more babies losing their lives through abortion each year.

According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, only 15 other states cover abortion services under their state Medicaid programs. Oregon, which has long since provided taxpayer-funded abortions for low-income women, recently expanded their own program to force taxpayers to cover free abortions with no cost-sharing for all women in the state, including illegal aliens.