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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, Throughout the State of Illinois, there are
3thousands of foster parents who have taken on the solemn
4responsibility of caring for the thousands of youth in care who
5are in the charge of the Illinois Department of Children and
6Family Services (DCFS); and
 
7    WHEREAS, As part of the DCFS mandate to administer care for
8our youth in care, access to quality medical care to ensure the
9health and well-being of these youth in care must be our top
10priority; and
 
11    WHEREAS, To meet this obligation, DCFS intends to
12transition youth in care from traditional Medicaid to a
13Medicaid managed care program administered by YouthCare; and
 
14    WHEREAS, While the transition to managed care is intended
15to improve the healthcare available to these vulnerable
16children, it is clear that YouthCare is not yet ready for this
17responsibility; serious concerns exist about the provider
18network needed to meet the specialized care needs of these
19children; and
 
20    WHEREAS, The concerns with YouthCare have already caused
21the managed care transition to be delayed on two occasions, but

 

 

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1it is clear that the multitude of concerns have not been
2addressed; and
 
3    WHEREAS, As the State has begun processing the transition
4of now adopted youth in care and young adults under age 26 who
5have aged out of the foster care system onto Medicaid managed
6care on February 1, 2020, this represents an opportunity for
7evaluation before transitioning the more than 17,000 youth in
8care in the foster care system; and
 
9    WHEREAS, Not only will the evaluation of this transition
10help sort out potential issues and give more time for YouthCare
11to improve its provider network, but it will also allow time to
12determine the success of the other five managed care providers
13that are available to adoptees and aged out youth in care; and
 
14    WHEREAS, If this transition and access to additional
15providers proves successful, delaying the youth in care
16transition will allow the legislature the opportunity to update
17the law and ensure better healthcare access for all our youth
18in care; and
 
19    WHEREAS, It is therefore necessary to delay the transition
20of youth in care in the charge of DCFS to Medicaid managed care
21for a period of one year beyond the currently scheduled
22transition date of April 1, 2020; therefore, be it
 

 

 

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1    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE
2HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
3we urge the administration of Illinois Governor JB Pritzker to
4delay the transition of the State's youth in care to Medicaid
5managed care for a period of one year; and be it further
 
6    RESOLVED, That we stand ready to work with the
7administration and, if necessary, enact legislation to ensure
8the health and well-being of our youth in care is protected;
9and be it further
 
10    RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be
11delivered to Governor JB Pritzker, Department of Children and
12Family Services Acting Director Marc D. Smith, and Department
13of Healthcare and Family Services Director Theresa Eagleson.