* WAND…

The Illinois House unanimously passed a bill Wednesday to ban insurance companies from automatically coding a health service lower than what is actually provided to patients.

This plan states all downcoding determinations must be made or reviewed by a real person, and insurance companies would be required to notify doctors if a service is downcoded.

The bill also bans insurers from downcoding in a discriminatory manner against doctors who routinely treat patients with complex health conditions. […]

Senate Bill 3114 previously gained unanimous support in the Senate. The measure now heads to Gov. JB Pritzker’s desk.

Illinois State Medical Society…

“This bill is another example of how Illinois leads the way in passing laws that improve access to medical care, making the state a more attractive place to practice medicine. Once signed into law, the Transparency in Downcoding Act will bring greater clarity to the claims process, establish a clear and accessible pathway for disputing downcoded claims and ensure that a live person — not an automated system — is reviewing medical claims and their accompanying clinical documentation.

The Illinois State Medical Society wants to thank all lawmakers who stood with physicians and patients to support this bill as it passed the Senate unanimously. We especially thank sponsors Sen. Dave Koehler and Rep. Sharon Chung for their leadership, and we are hopeful that Gov. J.B. Pritzker will sign this bill into law as Illinois continues advancing policies that support patients and healthcare providers.”

Key Provisions of the Transparency in Downcoding Act (SB 3114/HB 4735):

• Prohibits a health insurance issuer from using an automated process, system, or tool to downcode a claim
• Ensures that a live person — not an automated system — has done a complete and thorough review of claims and accompanying clinical documentation before a downcoding decision is made
• Ensures that a physician will be clearly notified when a claim has been downcoded and reimbursed at a lower level, including the clinical reason for downcoding
• Requires health insurers to establish a clear and accessible process for disputing downcoded claims. That means appeals must be reviewed by an individual with experience with the medical condition being managed and the services being downcoded using the most up to date AMA CPT® Coding Guideline, and
• Prevents health insurers from using downcoding to discriminate against physicians who commonly treat patients with complex or chronic conditions.

* Daily Herald…

House Bill 4948 would create the Intelligent Speed Assistance Program, allowing a driver convicted of speeding 26 mph or more above the limit twice in 12 months to keep driving, but with a high-tech speed control device installed in their vehicle.

The measure, which passed both chambers of the General Assembly this spring, was introduced by state Rep. Martha Deuter of Elmhurst. She told us Thursday that the traditional means of dealing with super speeders — suspending or revoking their licenses — doesn’t often keep them off the roads. […]

Among the bill’s supporters are Families for Safe Streets, whose draft proposal served as the basis for Deuter’s legislation, and AAA.

Under the law, a driver whose license is suspended for two 26+ mph speeding violations could apply to the secretary of state’s office for permission to join the program.

If approved, the driver would have to pay for professional installation of an approved speed control device, plus a $30 monthly fee. A driver with a first suspension would have to leave the device in for a year. A second suspension would mean a 24-month installation, and a third would mean three years of driving with the device.

* The Alliance for the Great Lakes…

The Illinois Senate on Thursday passed HB4418, which takes a first step in addressing pollution from the plastic pellets used to produce most plastic products. Having passed both chambers, the bill now heads to Gov. JB Pritzker’s desk for signature.

With the governor’s signature, Illinois state law will officially designate plastic pellets as a pollutant for the first time. Illinois will become the first of the Great Lakes states to hold producers of industrial plastic pellets accountable for spills of these toxic pellets into our waterways.

Plastic pollution adversely affects clean water, wildlife and public health. An estimated 22 million pounds of plastic waste ends up in the Great Lakes each year, and 86% of litter collected on Great Lakes beaches is plastic. A recent report found microplastics in 100% of tested waterways across Illinois.

Plastic pellets, sometimes referred to as “nurdles,” are the building blocks of plastics manufacturing. They are a recurring source of plastic pollution in the environment because they get dumped or spilled from stormwater runoff from plastic factories and during transportation between facilities.

The bill passed on Thursday by the Illinois General Assembly, sponsored by state Rep. Joyce Mason and state Sen. Julie Morrison, defines pre-production plastic pellets as a pollutant and directs the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA) to develop and implement stormwater pollution controls that specifically target plastic pellets. That means polluters would be required to have a plan to keep plastic pellets out of our waters, protecting wildlife and our drinking water sources from these toxic microplastics.

* Capitol City Now…

State Sen. Chris Balkema (R-Channahon) may not be welcomed home once the legislative session is over. He will have to face his only constituent who opposes – “very loudly,” no less – his bill to remove the mute swan from the endangered species list and put it into the crosshairs of Illinois hunters.

That constituent? Mrs. Balkema.

The senator said she is the answer to State Sen. Laura Ellman‘s (D-Naperville) question, “This is a mute swan? Who speaks for this swan?” The senator’s wife would also deliver a loud No to State Sen. Rachel Ventura‘s (D-Joliet) question of whether the mute swan is an “ugly duckling.”

The bill, which has passed unanimously in both chambers, speaks to the swan’s status as an invasive species which, said State Sen. Terri Bryant (R-Murphysboro), “does a lot of harm throughout the state. This is a swan that we don’t like, much like snow geese, and should be hunted. It gets rid of an invasive species.”

* More…

* Capitol News Illinois | Insurance regulation bills clear General Assembly: Gov. JB Pritzker says he looks forward to signing a pair of bills that cleared the Illinois House on Wednesday giving the state Insurance Department authority to regulate premiums charged for automobile and homeowners insurance. “Too many families have dealt with unexplained, unfair insurance price hikes on their homes and cars, so this legislation helps protect consumers while maintaining the core principles the Illinois business community is built on,” Pritzker said in a statement Wednesday night. Pritzker first called for regulating homeowners insurance rates last summer after Bloomington-based State Farm Insurance, one of the largest homeowners carriers in the nation, announced a 27.2% average rate increase across the state. He suggested at the time that State Farm and other companies were trying to shift disaster-related losses from other states onto the backs of Illinois consumers.

* WAND | Digital driver’s license cleanup bill heading to Pritzker’s desk: The plan could align technology and requirements related to mobile IDs and ensure consistency as the digital driver’s licenses are more widely used. This proposal also bans law enforcement from physically taking someone’s phone to verify their mobile ID. “Most of this language is based on an agreement between the Secretary of State and Joint Committee on Administrative Rules related to the rule making they adopted to implement the original law,” said Sen. Bill Cunningham (D-Chicago). “I’m aware of no opposition.”

* Bloomberg | Illinois Bill Banning Menopause Bias at Work Goes to Governor: The legislation (HB 5284) will make Illinois one of the first states to add menopause explicitly to its employment discrimination statutes, after Rhode Island passed a menopause accommodations law in 2025. Several states from New York to California have considered similar measures this year, as menopause-friendly proposals spread in the US and abroad. Actress Halle Berry gave the movement a publicity boost in 2024, when she spoke of her personal experience and endorsed a bill in Congress. Mostly Democratic-majority states are leading the charge while federal proposals lie dormant.

* WAND | IL House unanimously passes plan calling for school panic alert systems to improve emergency response: Sponsors say the Illinois State Police will work with the State Board of Education and the Illinois Emergency Management Agency to develop rules for the panic alert system. “Time equals life,” said Rep. Nabeela Syed (D-Palatine). “This bill is one step, one effort, just one small commitment to ensuring that we do everything in our power to protect others and learn from tragedy.” House Bill 5107 received unanimous support in the Senate last week. The measure now heads to the governor’s desk for final approval.