Illinois Public Media News

Some doctors see access to birth control as a tool in the fight to decrease maternal and infant mortality. Indiana has one of the nation’s worst rates of new mothers and infants dying, and those rates are even worse for black women. But a history of abuse has led to distrust of health care professionals in communities of color. 

One of the largest non-tuition expenses for many students is the cost of living on campus. The price of room and board has doubled in inflation adjusted dollars at public universities in the U.S. since 1980. 

A small but growing number of U.S. women are choosing to have their babies at home. In more than 30 states, including most of the Midwest, it’s legal for certified professional midwives – trained specifically in home birth – to assist them. Illinois is not among them; but the state Senate wants to study the issue.

Lawyers representing victims of sexual abuse by Catholic clergy have released a public list of accused clergy in Illinois. We hear from one of those attorneys and the archdiocese of Chicago. Plus, ‘crime-free’ housing rules are meant to reduce crime in rental properties, but landlords, tenants, and police are divided over whether these rules are too broad. 

The Illinois State Police was under fire Monday for the state’s huge backlog in testing crime-scene DNA.