Citing uncertainty around federal cuts, Gov. JB Pritzker unveiled a $56 billion budget proposal on Wednesday with little new funding for healthcare or other projects. [Health News Illinois]
The proposal includes just 0.5 percent of new spending, and it is laid out under the assumption that Illinois will win court battles over receiving federal funds for public health grants and other projects that the Trump administration has attempted to cut.
“Despite the headwinds, the Illinois economy has proven remarkably resilient — forging ahead on our path toward accelerating growth and expansion,” he said during his annual budget address.
One of the major provisions pushed by Pritzker on Wednesday is a new tax on social media companies with at least 100,000 users in Illinois. Companies would be taxed on a graduated scale, starting at 10 cents per user each month.
The fee is expected to generate $200 million per year to support K-12 education.
Pritzker said part of the goal is to address the mental health challenges in adolescents caused by social media algorithms.
“It’s a challenge unique to this generation, and it is made worse by the perverse incentive that social media companies seem to have to keep kids scrolling no matter what the cost to their physical and mental health,” he said.
The package also spends $50 million to implement provisions of the federal tax-and-spending bill passed last summer.
That includes hiring 450 new staff, community outreach and technological infrastructure to prepare for changes like work requirements in the Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
Pritzker’s office anticipates that $100 million will need to be spent over the next two fiscal years to implement federal requirements.
The package also allocates $143.6 million for a program that provides Medicaid-like coverage for undocumented individuals 65 years and older. Enrollment in that program will remain paused.
A similar program that provided coverage for undocumented individuals between the ages of 42 and 64 sunset last year.
The proposal also calls for a $0.60 per hour rate increase for direct support professionals and the implementation of a model at community-based living arrangements to add staffing support for residents.
Other provisions include:
- $193.4 million for the new Rural Health Transformation program to support rural healthcare providers and residents. Department of Healthcare and Family Services Director Elizabeth Whitehorn said Wednesday they will request $100 million in supplemental appropriation for the current fiscal year for the rural healthcare transformation, which she said will allow the agency to draw down the award.
- $166.8 million increase for the Department of Aging’s Community Care Program to support caseload and utilization growth and to annualize a $1.17 per hour rate increase for in-home providers.
- $148.8 million in funding for the Ligas consent decree.
- $39 million to implement the Tailored Case Management Program.
- $81.5 million to support shelters and other services for homeless populations.
- $22 million to support and promote full-spectrum reproductive care through community-based providers.
- $14.5 million for the Healthcare Transformation 1115 Waiver, focusing on infrastructure and limited housing services.
- $34 million increase to phase in the opening of additional mental health forensic beds in the Willow Building at the Alton Mental Health Center.
- $14 million for the Department of Public Health’s Office of Health Care Regulation to hire an additional 61 staff for licensing, inspecting and certifying healthcare facility compliance with state and federal regulations.
- Continued funding for the medical debt relief program.
Health associations were generally supportive of the proposal.
“We are encouraged by the Governor’s efforts to make healthcare more affordable for working families and to invest in programs that expand access to essential services statewide,” the Illinois Primary Health Care Association said in a statement. “Community health centers are on the front lines of delivering primary, preventive, and behavioral health services, and state support for affordability and access directly strengthens their ability to meet growing patient needs and address persistent health disparities.”
"We are grateful that Governor Pritzker has recognized that behavioral health care is not a discretionary expense, but a lifeline," said Community Behavioral Health Care Association of Illinois CEO Blanca Campos. “The Governor's commitment to maintaining this funding protects access to critical mental health and substance use disorder services for tens of thousands of Illinoisans who depend on them, after years of increased funding, is praiseworthy.”
“(Pritzker’s) continued commitment to affordability for Illinois residents through initiatives aimed at things like reducing medical debt and expanding affordable housing reflects a deep understanding of the many factors that impact community health,” said Illinois Association of Free and Charitable Clinics Executive Director Laura Starr. “These priorities will directly strengthen the well-being of the communities we serve.”
The AIDS Foundation Chicago said the budget cuts $1 million from HIV programs. It comes at a time when new HIV diagnoses are on the rise in Illinois, and the Trump administration has sought to cut funding to HIV programs.
“Illinois has always led the fight against HIV,” said foundation CEO John Peller. “At a time when federal protections are being stripped away, and communities are under attack, our state needs to double down. Investing in HIV care, prevention, and housing isn’t optional. It’s how we save lives and end this epidemic.”
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