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1
SENATE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, Ann Gillespie has served residents of the 27th
3State Senate District since 2018; and
 
4    WHEREAS, Ann Gillespie is a lifelong resident of the
5northwest suburbs, a retired business executive, and a former
6health care worker, serving as a staff attorney for a
7nonprofit HMO in Chicago, as a health care attorney at a
8Chicago law firm, as a consultant in managed health care, and
9as an executive with CVS Health's Caremark division; and
 
10    WHEREAS, Ann Gillespie earned a bachelor's degree in
11history from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and a
12juris doctorate from DePaul University; and
 
13    WHEREAS, Ann Gillespie entered her first term ready to
14bring change to working families in Illinois; and
 
15    WHEREAS, Drawing from her experiences as a lawyer, health
16care consultant, and vice president and general manager of a
17large mail pharmacy service, Ann Gillespie came to Springfield
18determined to be a proactive problem solver, introducing
19advanced legislation that would expand apprenticeship
20programs, protect workers and consumers, and provide inclusion
21to all Illinoisans; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, Ann Gillespie has prioritized protecting
2Illinois' social safety net during her time in office,
3utilizing her personal experience to create policy that
4addresses the needs of underserved populations throughout the
5state; and
 
6    WHEREAS, Ann Gillespie has used her background and
7perspective to improve Illinois' financial outlook, its
8business climate, and the quality of life for people in the
927th District and beyond; and
 
10    WHEREAS, Ann Gillespie fought for a bipartisan solution to
11target abuses of power in state government by introducing the
12first comprehensive ethics package in over a decade, which
13implemented numerous reforms aimed to prevent bad actors from
14gaming the system; and
 
15    WHEREAS, Ann Gillespie advocated to improve conditions at
16nursing homes across Illinois and passed legislation to
17overhaul the state's nursing home assessment and reimbursement
18methods by transitioning to a Patient Driven Payment Model and
19increasing the base per diem rate, as well as addressing
20employee shortages at long-term care facilities by requiring
21facilities to meet at least 70% of staffing levels outlined by
22a federal study to receive additional funding and by providing

 

 

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1additional funding to facilities that incentivize the
2retention and promotion of CNAs; and
 
3    WHEREAS, Ann Gillespie was a legislative champion for
4expanding affordable health care coverage in Illinois, passing
5legislation that established a state-based health insurance
6marketplace offering a variety of health insurance plans from
7different insurers that will reflect real-time data so all
8Illinoisans can find high-quality plans tailored to their
9needs; and
 
10    WHEREAS, Ann Gillespie carried legislation to expand
11Illinois' Medicaid system to cover new services and the
12implementation of new Medicaid-adjacent services by the
13Illinois Department of Health and Family Services and other
14agencies, enhancing provider networks and improving the
15availability of essential services to allow working families
16across the state to receive the care they need to keep
17themselves and their communities healthy; and
 
18    WHEREAS, Ann Gillespie pushed for a comprehensive Medicaid
19overhaul package to improve Medicaid reimbursement rates and
20expand services across numerous health care sectors, including
21rate increases for inpatient substance use disorder treatment,
22hospitals, supportive living facilities, community-based
23mental health services, and inpatient psychiatric care at

 

 

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1hospitals; and
 
2    WHEREAS, Ann Gillespie chaired the Senate
3Appropriations-Health and Human Services Committee in the
4103rd General Assembly and sat on the Early Childhood
5Education, Insurance, Judiciary, and Revenue Committees; and
 
6    WHEREAS, Ann Gillespie co-chaired the bipartisan Senate
7Women's Caucus, fighting for full gender equality and bringing
8forth initiatives to prioritize the health and well-being of
9women, including a hands-only CPR training for legislative
10members and staff; and
 
11    WHEREAS, Ann Gillespie assisted residents of the 27th
12District through her district office, traveling office hours,
13and community town halls and held an annual bake-off
14competition that allowed high school students to showcase
15their culinary talent and creativity, with the winning team
16receiving scholarship funds to attend Harper College; and
 
17    WHEREAS, With her experience in health care and dedication
18to improving insurance access for Illinoisans, Ann Gillespie
19exits the Senate to become the acting director of the Illinois
20Department of Insurance; therefore, be it
 
21    RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL

 

 

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1ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we thank Ann Gillespie
2for her service to the people of Illinois and honor her with
3this resolution; and be it further
 
4    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
5presented to Ann Gillespie with our best wishes for all her
6future endeavors.