Illinois Lawmakers Vote To Strengthen Law That Helps Sexual Abuse Survivors
The changes come after an investigation showing dozens of hospitals violated the 49-year-old law. It's unclear whether Democratic Gov. JB Pritzker will sign the bill.
The 19th and APM Reports:
Illinois Lawmakers Pass Bill Requiring Hospital Care For Sexual Assault Survivors
Lawmakers have strengthened Illinois’ longstanding sexual abuse survivors law in an effort to ensure patients receive critical care after sexual assault. (Martin, 6/12)
AP:
Illinois Investigates Police For Sharing License Plate Data With Texas Sheriff
The Illinois secretary of state on Thursday asked for an investigation into a suburban Chicago police department after learning that it violated state law by sharing data from automatic license-plate readers with a Texas sheriff seeking a woman who had an abortion. Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias asked the attorney general to review the matter. He also is creating an audit system to ensure police departments don’t run afoul of a 2023 law banning the distribution of license-plate data to track women seeking abortions or to find undocumented immigrants. (O’Connor, 6/12)
In other health news from across the U.S. —
Stat:
States Snag $9 Billion In Medicaid Funds As GOP Weighs New Limits
Hospitals, physician groups, and nursing homes across 15 states will receive billions of dollars in extra Medicaid funding this year thanks to federal health care officials signing off on new agreements. (Herman, 6/13)
Modern Healthcare:
Hospital Price Caps Become Latest State Tool To Limit Costs
States are turning to hospital price caps as other regulatory policies have yet to significantly slow healthcare spending. Nearly a dozen states have introduced bills over the past year that look to curb healthcare cost growth by limiting hospital prices, borrowing strategies from early price cap adopters in Rhode Island and Oregon. More states are poised to crack down on hospital prices because cost growth benchmarks, price transparency and other policies have yet to dent healthcare spending, industry observers said. (Kacik, 6/12)
The Nevada Independent:
Nevada To Pay $753K For Delays In Providing Mental Health Care To Criminal Defendants
The State of Nevada will pay more than $753,000 in court-ordered fines for delays in providing criminal defendants with mental health care at a psychiatric facility in Sparks. The Nevada Board of Examiners — composed of the governor, attorney general and secretary of state — signed off on the payment Tuesday after a Washoe County district court judge in April held the state in contempt for failing to provide timely treatment to criminal defendants deemed mentally unfit to stand trial. (Neugeboren, 6/12)
AP:
Louisiana AG Investigating CVS For Sending Mass Text Messages Lobbying Against Legislation
Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill announced Thursday she is investigating whether pharmaceutical giant CVS improperly used customers’ personal information to send out text messages lobbying against a proposed state law. Murrill also said she plans to issue a cease-and-desist letter to the company to stop the messages. As lawmakers debated a now-failed bill on Wednesday they held up screenshots of text messages sent by CVS. (Cline and Brook, 6/13)
The Texas Tribune:
Texas More Aligned With RFK Jr. After Legislative Session
The 2025 Texas Legislature proved to be a session of recalibration, where health care regulations were either tightened or loosened and attempts to delve further into some policy areas were left hanging until the next session. (Langford, Simpson and Klibanoff, 6/13)
Health News Florida:
17,269 Abortions Reported In Florida This Year
A reported 17,377 abortions had been performed in Florida this year as of June 2, a 45.8 percent decrease from a comparable period in 2024, according to state data. The drop came after a law took effect in May 2024 that prevented most abortions after six weeks of pregnancy. (6/12)
