(SPRINGFIELD) Governor J.B. Pritzker was joined earlier this week by doctors, patients, stakeholders, and lawmakers to highlight efforts to reform predatory health insurance practices and protect patients. The proposed Healthcare Protection Act aims to ban step therapy, and prior authorization for crisis mental health care, and end unchecked rate increases for large group insurance companies. The measure is targeting utilization management, which often forces consumers to obtain permission from their providers before receiving care that doctors have already determined to be necessary.
(SPRINGFIELD) A bill to allow what supporters call “medical aid-in-dying” in Illinois is now getting some pushback. The group, Stop Assisted Suicide Illinois, is taking a stand against the proposed legislation, saying that assisted suicide ushers in abuse, discrimination, and injustice. The measure, if approved, would allow terminally ill adults to have the option to get prescription medication to end their life, with the requirement that the patient meets with and consults with at least two physicians beforehand. Ten (10) states have legalized medical aid-in-dying, with 19 other states considering similar measures this spring.
(SPRINGFIELD) The Illinois bobcat hunting season has come to an end and the harvest numbers are in line with last year. According to the State DNR, hunters and trappers took 370 total bobcats around the state, an increase of three from 2023. In total, 214 bobcats were killed by hunters and 156 were taken by trappers. There were 7,000 total bobcat lottery applicants who applied for a permit this year with only 1,000 issued statewide.