South Cook News

Thaddeus Jones introduced HB2665 in the Illinois House on Feb. 4, 2025, during the general assembly session 104, according to the Illinois General Assembly.

According to the Illinois General Assembly site, the legislature summarized the bill's official text as follows: "Amends the Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly Act. Provides that to ensure that organizations contracted to implement the Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) program meet the needs of PACE participants, the Department of Healthcare and Family Services shall reform the rate-setting methodology for the PACE program by establishing a blended rate structure based on a 30% Home and Community-Based Services and 70% Skilled Nursing Facility case-mix which is a more accurate proportion of the comparable population expected to reside in an institution or the community if not enrolled in PACE. Requires the blended rate structure to more accurately reflect the comprehensive nature of care provided by PACE organizations and address the unique needs of PACE participants as a higher risk/acuity population with expected higher costs and frailty than comparable populations. Provides that when developing rates under the blended rate structure, the Department must consider not only the standard cost experiences of PACE participants but also the unique characteristics and specific care needs of the PACE population as well as any additional State plan services or populations that are not included in the State's Medicaid managed care contracts but are required under the PACE program."

The following is our breakdown, based on the actual bill text, and may include interpretation to clarify its provisions.

In essence, this bill amends the Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly Act to reform the rate-setting methodology for the PACE program. It establishes a blended rate structure comprising 30% Home and Community-Based Services and 70% Skilled Nursing Facility case-mix to better reflect the typical population distribution. The bill aims to address the unique needs of PACE participants, who often have higher risks, costs, and frailty compared to other populations. When developing the rates, the Department of Healthcare and Family Services must consider the specific care needs of PACE participants and any additional services required under the PACE program. The blended rate structure should align with actuarial rate development principles and include mechanisms for high-cost drugs and treatments. These provisions apply to rates established on and after the bill’s effective date.

Thaddeus Jones has proposed another nine bills since the beginning of the 104th session.

Jones graduated from Loyola University Chicago with a BS.

Thaddeus Jones is currently serving in the Illinois State House, representing the state's 29th House District. He replaced previous state representative David E. Miller in 2011.

Bills in Illinois follow a multi-step legislative process, beginning with introduction in either the House or Senate, followed by committee review, floor debates, and votes in both chambers before reaching the governor for approval or veto. The General Assembly operates on a biennial schedule, and while typically thousands of bills are introduced each session, only a fraction successfully pass through the process to become law.

You can read more about bills and other measures here.

Bill Number	Date Introduced	Short Description
HB2665	02/04/2025	Amends the Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly Act. Provides that to ensure that organizations contracted to implement the Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) program meet the needs of PACE participants, the Department of Healthcare and Family Services shall reform the rate-setting methodology for the PACE program by establishing a blended rate structure based on a 30% Home and Community-Based Services and 70% Skilled Nursing Facility case-mix which is a more accurate proportion of the comparable population expected to reside in an institution or the community if not enrolled in PACE. Requires the blended rate structure to more accurately reflect the comprehensive nature of care provided by PACE organizations and address the unique needs of PACE participants as a higher risk/acuity population with expected higher costs and frailty than comparable populations. Provides that when developing rates under the blended rate structure, the Department must consider not only the standard cost experiences of PACE participants but also the unique characteristics and specific care needs of the PACE population as well as any additional State plan services or populations that are not included in the State's Medicaid managed care contracts but are required under the PACE program.
HB2666	02/04/2025	Amends the Elected City Officers Division of the Municipal Code. Requires every municipality to stagger the terms of its alderpersons (rather than allowing municipalities to adopt a proposition to stagger the terms of its alderpersons). Provides that, if a municipality has not adopted a proposition to stagger the terms of alderpersons before the effective date of the amendatory Act, then at the next regular election for alderpersons one alderperson shall be elected from each even-numbered ward for a term of 2 years and one alderperson shall be elected from each odd-numbered ward for a term of 4 years and their successors shall be elected for terms of 4 years. Provides that the City of Chicago and the City of Chicago Heights are not required to stagger the elections of their alderpersons.
HB1808	01/28/2025	Reappropriates the sum of $1,400,000 from the Build Illinois Bond Fund to the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity for a grant to the City of Calumet City for costs associated with capital improvements. Effective July 1, 2025.
HB1774	01/27/2025	Reappropriates the sum of $100,000 from the Build Illinois Bond Fund to the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity for a grant to the City of Calumet City for costs associated with the construction of infrastructure improvements. Effective July 1, 2025.
HB1775	01/27/2025	Creates the Black Wall Street Program Act. Requires the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity to create and administer the Black Wall Street Program to provide loans and financial assistance to designated communities for the creation of Black Wall Street Business Districts. Specifies further requirements concerning Program eligibility and the disbursement of loan funds under the Program. Requires each municipality receiving a loan under the Program to establish a municipal investment program by which loan funds are disbursed to qualified African American business entities and persons for the purpose of establishing Black Wall Street Business Districts. Allows for the use of loan funds to invest in, issue, or sell bonds for the purpose of the construction of Black Wall Street Business Districts and all related matters. Requires the Department to compile and make available to the public a database of qualified African American contractors and engineers. Requires the Department to create and administer a Black Wall Street Investment Hub for the purposes of providing specified assistance to African American business entities and persons in establishing Black Wall Street businesses. Provides for the adoption of administrative rules. Creates the Black Wall Street Fund as a special fund in the State treasury for specified purposes. Defines terms. Makes conforming changes.
HB1325	01/14/2025	Amends the Illinois Health Facilities Planning Act. Creates the South Suburban Trauma Center Fund as a special fund in the State treasury. Specifies that certain toll surcharges are to be deposited in the Fund and used for a suburban trauma center to be situated on the border between Calumet City and the Village of Dolton. Describes additional duties of the Health Facilities and Services Review Board regarding the establishment of a south suburban trauma center. Amends the Toll Highway Act. Imposes a toll surcharge at a specific toll plaza. Amends the State Finance Act to make conforming changes. Effective immediately.
HB1326	01/14/2025	Amends the Property Tax Code. Creates a homestead exemption for certain property located in Cook County that has been used as a qualified taxpayer's principal dwelling place for at least 5 continuous years as of January 1 of the taxable year. Provides that the aggregate amount of property taxes levied against that property in any taxable year may not exceed $5,000. Effective immediately.
HB1327	01/14/2025	Amends the Public Community College Act. Provides that the Board of Trustees of Community College District No. 510 shall change the name of the Allied Health & Nursing Center at South Suburban College to the Frank M. Zuccarelli Allied Health Center.
HB1159	01/09/2025	Amends the Illinois Insurance Code. Defines "health benefit plan" and other terms. Provides that a pharmacy benefit manager or an affiliate acting on the pharmacy benefit manager's behalf is prohibited from conducting spread pricing, from steering a covered individual, and from limiting a covered individual's access to prescription drugs from a pharmacy or pharmacist enrolled with the health benefit plan under the terms offered to all pharmacies in the plan coverage area by unreasonably designating the covered prescription drugs as a specialty drug. Provides that a pharmacy benefit manager or an affiliate acting on the pharmacy benefit manager's behalf must remit 100% of rebates and fees to the health benefit plan sponsor, consumer, or employer. Provides that a pharmacy benefit manager may not reimburse a pharmacy or pharmacist for a prescription drug or pharmacy service in an amount less than the national average drug acquisition cost for the prescription drug or pharmacy service at the time the drug is administered or dispensed, plus a professional dispensing fee. Provides that a contract between a pharmacy benefit manager and an insurer or health benefit plan sponsor must allow and provide for the pharmacy benefit manager's compliance with an audit at least once per calendar year of the rebate and fee records remitted from a pharmacy benefit manager or its contracted party to a health benefit plan. Provides that provisions concerning pharmacy benefit manager contracts apply to any health benefit plan (instead of any group or individual policy of accident and health insurance or managed care plan) that provides coverage for prescription drugs and that is amended, delivered, issued, or renewed on or after July 1, 2020. Requires a pharmacy benefit manager to submit an annual report that includes specified information concerning prescription drugs. Makes other changes. Amends the Freedom of Information Act to make a conforming change. Effective July 1, 2025.
HB1166	01/09/2025	Amends the Public Utilities Act. Provides that an electric utility that serves more than 3,000,000 customers in the State shall fund the construction of 5 employment training centers at a cost to be determined by the utility. Provides that the employment training centers shall be located in: the west side of Chicago; Ford Heights; Waukegan; Bloomington; and Peoria.
HB1167	01/09/2025	Amends the Property Tax Code. Creates the South Suburban Property Tax Relief Homestead Exemption Pilot Program. Provides that, for taxable years 2026 through 2030, certain qualified homestead property that is used as the primary residence of an individual who has occupied the property for at least 5 continuous years as of January 1 of the taxable year is eligible for a credit against the property taxes imposed on that property. Provides that the amount of the credit is the lesser of (i) the property tax liability for the property for the applicable taxable year or (ii) $5,000. Contains provisions concerning applications for the pilot program. Provides that the Cook County Assessor may not award credits under the pilot program for more than 7,500 properties in any taxable year. Amends the State Finance Act. Creates the South Suburban Property Tax Relief Fund. Provides that moneys in the Fund shall be used to make reimbursements to taxing districts that are affected by the South Suburban Property Tax Relief Homestead Exemption Pilot Program. Makes changes to provisions concerning the Cannabis Regulation Fund to provide for transfers to the South Suburban Property Tax Relief Fund. Amends the Video Gaming Act to make conforming changes. Effective immediately.