Illinois will specifically cover menopause-related conditions within its ban on job bias and requirements for reasonable workplace accommodations, under legislation headed to Gov. JB Pritzker (D) for his signature.
The legislation (HB 5284) will make Illinois one of the first states to add menopause explicitly to its employment discrimination statutes, after Rhode Island passed a menopause accommodations law in 2025.
Several states from New York to California have considered similar measures this year, as menopause-friendly proposals spread in the US and abroad. Actress Halle Berry gave the movement a publicity boost in 2024, when she spoke of her personal experience and endorsed a bill in Congress. Mostly Democratic-majority states are leading the charge while federal proposals lie dormant.
The Illinois measure also calls for expanding requirements for state-regulated health insurers to cover certain treatments related to menopause and perimenopause.
The state House gave its final approval to the Democratic-sponsored bill Thursday, agreeing to the Senate’s amendments by a vote of 78-33.
Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger (D) recently vetoed similar workplace protections, saying the state should study the issue instead and that existing anti-bias law protects against menopause-related bias under the categories of age and sex.
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