For too many Illinois families, healthcare has become another financial burden at a time when just about everything costs more. Prescription prices are high, insurance premiums continue to strain household budgets, and families are left wondering how they will afford the care they need.
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But behind every healthcare decision is a person. A senior managing several prescriptions. A parent worried about a child's diagnosis. A family trusting a nursing home to care for someone they love.
These are the people I think about when considering healthcare legislation in Springfield.
As a mother of three and your State Senator, I believe families deserve access to affordable, quality healthcare, and I have worked to advance legislation that addresses these concerns.
One of those efforts was the Prescription Drug Affordability Act, which I supported back in 2025. This legislation addresses unfair practices that can drive up prescription drug costs and provides funding to help local pharmacies here at home.
For many Illinois residents, especially seniors, their local pharmacy is where they turn for medications, and help managing their health. We need to make sure those services remain available.
I've also supported legislation to eliminate certain state taxes on prescription medications and medical devices used in cancer treatment. When someone is already facing a serious illness, Springfield shouldn't be making their treatment more expensive.
And when it comes to childhood cancer, I believe we can do more.
This year, I introduced legislation to create the Illinois Pediatric Cancer Fund to support research and treatment for children battling cancer. No parent should have to watch their child go through something like that, and I believe we should be doing everything we can to help these families.
Another area I've focused on is protecting seniors and vulnerable residents.
Working alongside State Representative Amy Elik, I helped pass legislation that will require nursing homes to promptly report serious injuries involving residents. Families deserve to know that when something happens to a loved one, it will be properly reported.
I also supported legislation requiring assisted living facilities to have emergency plans in place that consider the individual needs of their residents. Whether it's a fire, severe weather or another emergency, families should have confidence that their loved ones are being protected.
Mental healthcare is just as important as physical healthcare.
I helped pass legislation to make information about the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline more accessible at local pharmacies, helping individuals and families find support when they need it most.
I also supported expanding mental health counseling insurance protections for coroners, medical examiners and their deputies. These individuals face difficult situations in their jobs, and they deserve access to the same kind of care and support as our first responders.
And in smaller communities, where emergency medical services often face staffing challenges, I sponsored legislation giving smaller, rural ambulance services more flexibility to staff their emergency crews to continue serving their communities.
These are different pieces of legislation, but they all come back to the same thing: making healthcare more affordable, protecting patients and making sure families have access to the care they need.
I know there is still plenty of work ahead. Healthcare costs remain too high, and too many families are struggling to navigate insurance coverage, medical bills and finding quality care.
We need to keep listening to patients, families and healthcare professionals about what's working, what isn't and where we can do better.
I believe there is a lot we can accomplish when we work together and focus on the issues that matter to the people we represent.
Because whether it's a child battling cancer, a senior trying to afford medication or a family concerned about a loved one's care, healthcare is personal.
And every Illinois family deserves to know we're working to make it more affordable and accessible.
