New rulings by the Illinois Department of Revenue have reignited a debate over whether the State’s non-profit hospitals provide adequate charity care to patients in exchange for their property-tax exemptions. On August 16, 2011 the Department of Revenue denied property tax exemptions to three hospitals and said it was reviewing applications from 15 others seeking exemptions . As is customary for…
After twice rejecting the plan, a State of Illinois board voted on August 16, 2011 to allow Cook County to close Oak Forest Hospital. The Illinois Health Facilities and Services Review Board approved the proposal by a vote of 7 to 1, with one member voting present. It was the first time that the Health Facilities Board had considered the Oak Forest closure since Governor Pat Quinn in June 2011…
A recent mid-year report issued by Cook County provides more details on the budget difficulties facing the County’s public health system in the 2011 fiscal year that ends on November 30, 2011. The required FY2011 county subsidy to the Cook County Health and Hospitals System is estimated at $371.2 million, according to data in the report. That compares with a budgeted subsidy for the year of $280.…
Governor Pat Quinn signed the State of Illinois’ FY2012 budget on June 30, 2011, a day before the start of the new fiscal year. The FY2012 budget is expected to generate a mountain of unpaid Medicaid bills and a possible court battle over union pay raises. In signing the budget, which includes $32.987 billion in general operating funds, the Governor reduced the budget passed by the General…
The Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago recently co-hosted a conference featuring analysis and discussion among local and national budget experts to better understand the fiscal condition of states and prospects for economic recovery after several years of ongoing financial stress. The meeting was co-hosted by the by the Federal Reserve Banks of Philadelphia and New York in partnership with the John…
Since Cook County passed its FY2011 budget in February 2011, it has been evident that the County’s public health system would face major hurdles in achieving the budget goals. The size of those hurdles became clearer on June 24, 2011 at a meeting of the Board of Directors of the Cook County Health and Hospitals System. The Health System is expected to be slightly under budget on expenses for…
The Illinois General Assembly reconvened on June 22, 2011 for an extra day of the spring session to sort out several issues that were not addressed three weeks ago when the legislature adjourned after approving a $33.2 billion budget. Both the House and the Senate took action to reauthorize the State’s ongoing $31-billion capital program, which was first enacted in FY2010. As previously discussed…
In this article about how parents of disabled children are moving out of Illinois due to uncertainty about the State’s funding of social service programs, the Civic Federation says that payment uncertainty on the part of social service providers is caused in part by the state’s unwillingness to cut spending to match increased revenue.
Surprising as it may seem, not all budget cuts reduce spending. A case in point is the FY2012 Medicaid budget passed by the Illinois House on May 13, 2011. House Bill 3717 includes $6.9 billion of General Funds appropriations for the State of Illinois’ Medical Assistance Program.[1] As indicated in the chart below, the House budget is $537.3 million below Governor Pat Quinn’s proposed FY2012…
A key component of Cook County’s plan to remake its public health system was rejected by a State of Illinois board on May 10, 2011, adding to concerns that the County might have difficulties implementing its FY2011 budget. At a meeting in Joliet, the Illinois Health Facilities and Services Review Board (Health Facilities Board) rejected by one vote the request to end inpatient and emergency room…
