In the final days of the spring session, Illinois lawmakers passed important key bills on health insurance, quantum computing, and abortion rights, but some plans for stadium funding and stricter gun control did not pass.
Illinois Lawmakers Advance Key Bills on Health, Technology, and Reproductive Rights
According to the published article in the Chicago Sun-Times, in the final days of the spring legislative session, Illinois lawmakers pushed forward important key bills focusing on health insurance, quantum computing, and keeping the state a safe place for abortion seekers. Governor J.B. Pritzker is set to approve a health insurance package that stops “junk plans” and step therapy, and requires insurance to cover pregnancy and newborn care by doulas or midwives. Lawmakers also approved tax breaks to attract quantum computing research and incentives for electric vehicle and clean-energy projects.
Other important key bills passed include allowing digital driver’s licenses and IDs on cellphones, and capping prescription inhaler costs at $25 for state-regulated insurance plans. A new law will require climate change education in public schools. To protect reproductive rights, a key bill was passed to stop Illinois authorities from helping out-of-state investigations of people seeking abortions here, and it allows minors to apply for public aid for family planning services.
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100%: Illinois Lawmakers Pass Key Bills on Health Insurance, Quantum Computing, and Abortion Rights in Final Days of Spring Legislative Session (PHOTO: Chicago Sun-Times)
Challenges and Setbacks – Key Initiatives Fail to Gain Traction in Illinois Legislative Session
Furthermore, some efforts didn’t succeed. The Chicago Bears and White Sox didn’t get state bonds for new stadiums, and the push to raise the subminimum wage for tipped workers stalled. Karina’s Key Bill, to let police take guns from people with protective orders, faced legal issues and didn’t pass. The status of hemp-derived delta-8 THC products also remains unclear, with a proposed ban still undecided in the House.
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