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Democrats say it needed for residents. Republicans say the bill
could increase the state’s health care costs by up to $12
billion
House Bill 158 cleared the Illinois Senate last week after
previously passing the House earlier in the month.
State Sen. Mattie Hunter, D-Chicago, said the measure will make
Illinois a trailblazer.
“Community health worker certification, maternal and infant
mortality, mental and substance abuse treatment, hospital reform
and medical implicit bias, addressing these areas will
dramatically alter the structure of our healthcare system for
the better,” Hunter said.
State Sen. Steve McClure, R-Springfield, said there are good
things in the bill, but the state is broke and can’t afford the
price tag of $5 to $12 billion.
“The $7.5 billion from the recent [federal] stimulus is going to
help us quite a bit, but we’re still in very rough financial
shape right now,” McClure said.
State Sen. Jacqueline Collins, D-Chicago, said the bill was
necessary.
“We can not not afford it,” Collins said. “How do you put a
price tag on somebody’s life and the quality of life?”
Funding of expanded programs would be subject to appropriation.
In promoting statehouse Republican’s Reimagine Illinois platform
Thursday, state Rep. C.D. Davidsmeyer, R-Jacksonville, said the
state can’t afford more programs. Instead, the state should
foster job growth and prioritize spending on current
obligations, he said.
“They promised a healthcare funding bill that would promise an
additional $5 to $12 billion,” Davidsmeyer said. “We have to get
back to the things that we’ve already promised.
Davidsmeyer said the state can’t even properly fund its unfunded
pension obligations or backlogged bills, let alone expand new
programs.
The measure could be sent to the governor any day.
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