* OK, this is not something you see every day. Reps. Dave McSweeney and Greg Harris filing a bill together. Press release…

State Representative David McSweeney (R-Cary) today introduced bipartisan legislation to protect patients who depend on medical supplies and equipment from the Rauner Administration’s massive reorganization of the Illinois Medicaid program. Assistant Majority Leader Greg Harris (D-Chicago) is co-sponsoring the legislation (HB 5930).

“The decision to ram through a multi-billion dollar reorganization of our state’s Medicaid system was done with little forethought and shows no signs of saving taxpayers a dime,” Representative McSweeney said. “MCOs are slashing rates to providers, potentially driving them out of business. This will lead to lost jobs and increased costs to the state in the future. Our bill also prohibits sole source contracts. Requiring competition will help save taxpayers money.”

“This legislation will ensure low-income individuals are guaranteed a minimum quality standard for medical supplies and equipment, while protecting small Illinois businesses from multi-billion dollar insurers seeking to maximize their own profits,” said Representative Harris. “It’s time we take action to protect Illinois’ healthcare infrastructure.”

HB 5930 will:

• Require the Department of Healthcare and Family Services to create minimum quality standards for medical supplies and equipment
• Set a floor on provider reimbursements, to ensure we don’t drive these critical small businesses out of the market
• Prohibit Managed Care Organizations from signing sole-source contracts with providers of medical supplies and equipment
• Save taxpayers money by:
o protecting a competitive medical supply and equipment marketplace
o ensuring that patients have access to high-quality products, reducing the need for more expensive interventions like hospitalizations.

McSweeney’s legislation comes on the heels of several stories from Illinois and throughout the country showing certain managed care companies taking advantage of lax oversight by slashing reimbursement rates to providers, thus resulting in poor patients losing access to vital medical equipment like breathing machines and incontinence supplies.

Recently, the Dallas Morning News wrote several disturbing stories outlining how one Managed Care Organization, mismanaged Texas’s program for Texas Foster Children. Illinois selected the same company, Centene, to manage the healthcare of the children under the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services’ care. The stories exposed how without oversight, MCOs saved money by denying necessary equipment and care, even for some of the state’s most vulnerable children.

“I look forward to working with members of both parties to pass this bill during veto session and begin the process of ensuring that our Medicaid program works for taxpayers and patients alike,” McSweeney added.

WBEZ aired a story on the legislation this week. Click here.

* Other stuff…

* ADDED: State program can help assure secure retirement for thousands: While many state legislatures are examining this type of program, Illinois is just the second state to implement one, and as with any major change or new idea, there are skeptics. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has called Secure Choice “the wrong answer” because its leadership believes state-sponsored plans “are a poor substitute for employer-provided plans” in part because employees “are significantly limited in how much they are allowed to contribute.” This criticism completely misses the point. Whether or not Secure Choice would be better than an employer’s retirement plan is irrelevant to the thousands of small businesses, solo entrepreneurs and employees in Illinois who don’t have access to any retirement plan. Secure Choice cannot discourage employers to end a benefit they do not offer, nor will it dissuade companies from offering a benefit they cannot afford.
* Rauner Vetoes Bill On ‘Jailhouse Snitches’: The bill would have regulated the testimony of so-called jailhouse snitches. In cases involving murder, sexual assault, or arson, defense attorneys would have gotten advance notice, and judges could block the informant’s testimony. John Hanlon, with the Illinois Innocence Project at the University of Illinois Springfield, says when Illinois had a death penalty, false informant testimony was the leading cause of wrongful convictions.

* New Law Allows Kids To Unlock Potential: Thanks to an acceleration law championed by Senator Kimberly Lightford and Representative Camille Lilly, thousands of advanced learners from across Illinois will now have a new opportunity to take courses that meet their intellectual needs. The upcoming school year will be the first year the state’s new acceleration law goes into effect; requiring all school districts to allow advanced learners to enter school early, enroll in above grade level courses, or skip grades if they are deemed eligible for acceleration. This means that the 4-year-old who knows how to read can now enter kindergarten; that the sixth grader who understands Algebra can now sit in on an eighth-grade class; and, that the high school junior who has already earned all the credits they need to graduate can now graduate early.