Senator Fine supports cap on rising insulin costs

SPRINGFIELD – New legislation chief co-sponsored by Senator Laura Fine (D-Glenview) would give Illinois diabetics relief from the skyrocketing costs of insulin.

“Prescription drug companies have burdened diabetics and their families with prohibitive costs for too long. People have been forced to choose between paying their bills and getting the insulin they need,” said Fine. “We are stepping up and putting a stop to the price gouging.”

Senate Bill 667 caps patients’ out-of-pocket costs for prescription insulin at $100 for a 30-day supply.

More than 30 million Americans have diabetes, and 7.4 million Americans require prescription insulin every day to survive, according to the American Diabetes Association. However, the price of insulin has risen sharply in recent years, driving many patients to sacrifice other daily needs to pay for insulin or to ration their supply.

The legislation would make Illinois the second state to cap prescription insulin co-payments.

“Diabetics should be able to afford life-saving insulin without having to sacrifice other needs,” said Fine. “The cost of a prescription should never prevent them from leading happy, healthy lives.”

The bill passed the Senate 48-7 and now heads to the House of Representatives.

Senator Fine legislation protecting victims of financial crimes signed into law

GLENVIEW – The statute of limitations on civil actions related to certain financial crimes will be changed from 5 years to 10 years under legislation sponsored by State Senator Laura Fine (D-Glenview) that was signed into law today.

“Some seniors may not realize they are victims of financial crimes until after the statute of limitations has expired,” Fine said. “This legislation will give seniors and other victims of these types of crimes ample time to seek justice.”

Under House Bill 2287, the following crimes will have the statute of limitations raised to 10 years:

- Theft of property exceeding $100,000 in value;
- Identity theft;
- Aggravated identity theft;
- Financial exploitation of an elderly person or a person with a disability

The legislation takes effect immediately.

Senator Fine’s legislation extending protection to youth in DCFS care becomes law

GLENVIEW – Youth in the care of the Department of Children and Family Services will have a few mew more protections in place under a new law taking effect sponsored by State Senator Laura Fine (D-Glenview)

Senate Bill 191 deals with eligibility for the Family Support Program services or an Individual Care Grant. Under current statue, parents may be forced to give up custody of their children in order for the children to receive necessary mental health care. This causes many parents to opt not to provide that care, which negatively impacts the health and well-being of the child. The result is often that the youth will begin to engage in delinquent acts or have difficulty managing or coping with negative emotions and behaviors.

“Having to choose between your child’s well-being and keeping custody of your child is a decision that no parent should be forced to make,” Fine said. “That dilemma is removed under this bill, which allows parents to provide their children with the care they need.”

The new law allows children who are placed under DCFS guardianship to retain their eligibility for Individual Care Grants, which provide funding to parents of children with mental illnesses.

SB191 also raises the age when cases involving children in youth care automatically expire, from 19 to 21.

“When a child who was once in care comes of age, that doesn’t automatically mean that they no longer require assistance,” Fine said. “Extending the age by just two years gives these young adults a little bit more time to find the stability they need to begin their adult lives.”

The bill is an initiative of the Office of the Cook County Public Guardian, and contains elements from two of Fine’s measures that were sent to the House of Representatives. The House Sponsor combined the bills into one to ease the legislative process. SB 191 passed through both chambers of the General Assembly with unanimous, bipartisan support and is effective immediately.

Senator Fine joins Attorney General and Advocates to protest lawsuit that would overturn ACA, nd pre-ex protections and take coverage from millions

CHICAGO – As the Fifth Circuit Court prepares to hear opening arguments in the Texas v. United States lawsuit that threatens to derail health coverage and pre-existing conditions protections for millions of Americans, local Illinois leaders and people who depend on Affordable Care Act (ACA) for health coverage condemned this latest attack on health care.

After failing to legislatively repeal the ACA, President Trump vowed to dismantle the health care law piece by piece. His 2017 tax law cut over $300 billion from the ACA to fund permanent tax breaks for corporations by making changes to the individual mandate. In February of 2018, twenty Republican-controlled states filed a lawsuit to overturn the ACA based on those changes in the tax law, backed by President’s Trump’s Department of Justice (DOJ).
In March, DOJ filed a brief arguing that the entire law, including its protections for pre-existing conditions, should be overturned.

California Attorney General Becerra, along with over 20 state Attorney Generals from both parties including Illinois and the U.S. House of Representatives, have stepped up to defend the ACA and preserve coverage for 20 million people, pre-existing condition protections for 130 million people and other key provisions of ACA that lower drug prices for seniors, provide coverage to people up to age 26 on their parents’ plans and stop insurers from charging women more than men for the same coverage.

“The Affordable Care Act ensures access to critical medical care for thousands of Illinois residents, including vulnerable populations such as seniors, children with preexisting conditions, and people who rely on Medicaid,” Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul said. “I am committed to fighting the federal government’s callous and unconstitutional efforts to deny millions of Americans access to the health care they deserve.”

“In simple terms, the Trump lawsuit will make America sick again,” said State Senator Laura Fine (IL-9). The impact of a bad decision will go far beyond the 20 million who get coverage under the ACA. The ACA has been a job creator for Illinois in addition to providing protections for all. I am proud to have sponsored Protect ACA Resolution (SR 264) in the Illinois State Senate this past session which affirms our commitment to the Affordable Care Act and Medicaid. My constituents in the 9th district and in the entire state do not want to go back to the dark days before the ACA.”

“Thousands of Illinoisans depend on coverage under the Affordable Care Act, but millions have benefited from the act’s protections for all health consumers” said William McNary, Co-Director, Citizen Action/IL. “If this latest attack on the ACA succeeds; 605,000 people in Illinois would lose their private or Medicaid coverage; 5.4 million people with pre-existing conditions would lose their protections and potentially lose their coverage or have to pay more; 187,360 seniors on Medicare who currently get discounts on their prescription drugs would face increased costs; and 5.89 million Illinoisans would lose free preventive care.”

“Without the ACA, I wouldn’t be able to afford my blood pressure, cholesterol and glaucoma medicines. The ACA closed the gap in coverage under Medicare Part D. It’s not fair for President Trump to keep playing partisan games with healthcare. This lawsuit puts healthcare at risk for seniors like me” said Katie Jordan of Chicago and a member of the IL Alliance for Retired Americans.

More than 130 million people with pre-existing conditions like diabetes, high blood pressure or pregnancy depend on the Affordable Care Act and could be denied coverage or forced to pay higher premiums if this lawsuit succeeds.
Millions of seniors who are getting discounts on prescription drugs in Medicare could go back to paying more for medicine or could lose free preventive care they gained under the ACA. Young people up to age 26 who currently get coverage on their parents plan could lose insurance. And millions of women could go back to facing gender discrimination that allows insurers to charge them more than a man for the same insurance.

Polls show that the majority of Americans do not want to see the Affordable Care Act overturned or continually attacked, but rather want lawmakers to build on the existing law to expand coverage, affordability and quality of coverage.