State of Illinois
91st General Assembly
Legislation

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91_HB2332

 
                                               LRB9104565DJcd

 1        AN ACT to amend the Illinois Rural/Downstate  Health  Act
 2    by changing Section 2.

 3        Be  it  enacted  by  the People of the State of Illinois,
 4    represented in the General Assembly:

 5        Section  5.  The Illinois Rural/Downstate Health  Act  is
 6    amended by changing Section 2 as follows:

 7        (410 ILCS 65/2) (from Ch. 111 1/2, par. 8052)
 8        Sec. 2. Findings; definition.  The General Assembly finds
 9    that citizens in the rural, downstate and designated shortage
10    areas  of  this State are increasingly faced with problems in
11    accessing necessary health care. The closure of  small  rural
12    hospitals,  the  inability  of  these  areas  to  attract new
13    physicians, the elimination of  existing  physician  services
14    because  of  increasing practice costs, including the cost of
15    providing malpractice insurance, and the lack of  systems  of
16    emergency  medical  care  contribute  to  the access problems
17    experienced experience by these residents. While Illinois  is
18    not  unique  in  experiencing  these  problems,  the  need to
19    maintain or enhance the economies of these areas of the State
20    requires that new and innovative strategies be identified and
21    implemented to respond to the health care needs of  residents
22    of  these  areas.  It is therefore the intent of this General
23    Assembly to create a program to respond to this problem.
24        For purposes of this  Act,  "designated  shortage  areas"
25    means medically underserved areas or health manpower shortage
26    area as defined by the United States Department of Health and
27    Human  Services  or  as  otherwise designated by the Illinois
28    Department of Public Health.
29    (Source: P.A. 86-965; 86-1187; revised 10-31-98.)

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