Illinois lawmakers took one other step this week to finish this system providing healthcare protection to Illinois residents with out authorized standing in america.
The legislature’s Joint Committee on Administrative Guidelines this week gave a inexperienced gentle to guidelines that may section out the Well being Advantages for Immigrant Adults program on July 1. The section out has been anticipated ever since Democratic Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker launched a finances define in February that didn’t embody cash for it.
However some lawmakers are fast to level out that JCAR is only one a part of the method – and hope to save lots of this system.
“The sentiment that has been expressed to (the Latino) caucus is that if we are able to proceed to discover a method to work on an appropriation and on a coverage proposal that is sensible, that we nonetheless have a path ahead,” stated State Sen. Graciela Guzman (D-Chicago).
HBIA primarily serves residents between the ages of 42 and 64 who aren’t eligible for conventional healthcare protection, like Medicaid, on account of their authorized standing. It was launched as an enlargement to the Well being Advantages for Immigrant Seniors program that covers individuals over the age of 65.
As of March 2025 there have been roughly 31,000 individuals enrolled in this system.
Enrollment in HBIA was paused in July 2023 as prices shortly exceeded expectations. An audit launched by Illinois Auditor Common Frank Mautino in February of this yr indicated this system price the state roughly $1.6 billion since final summer time, which far outpaced authentic price estimates.
“Many members within the Common Meeting have been speaking about totally different types of income that we may suggest, not simply to assist fund this program, however different priorities that we all know are wanted by working class households right here within the state of Illinois,” stated Guzman.
State Rep. Norma Hernandez (D-Melrose Park), who chairs the Home Latino Caucus, says she’s been in finances negotiations this week and sees a path ahead – noting discussions on issues like a tax on digital providers, closing company tax loopholes and different methods to earn more money she says “aren’t on the backs of working class individuals.”
Packages like that, Guzman says, would assist deal with a number of issues that she “[knows] are wanted by working class households right here within the state of Illinois” – like reasonably priced housing, safer communities and entry to after college applications.
“We’ve nonetheless obtained weeks to go on this course of,” Guzman stated. “I don’t know what’s going to occur if the eleventh hour, HBIA remains to be not on the desk, and I might hope to have the ability to companion with [Senate President Don Harmon (D-Oak Park)] on regardless of the subsequent step must be to make sure that our neighborhood is protected and has the sources that they want.”
Alex Degman is an Illinois statehouse reporter for WBEZ based mostly in Springfield.
