Villa presents House Bill 205 in the Illinois House of Representatives, where it passed with strong bipartisan support. Villa’s measure now moves to the state Senate for consideration.
State Rep. Karina Villa, D-West Chicago, has sponsored legislation to include mental health programs in school curriculum. The measure, which outlines the importance of the connection between mental and physical health in schools, has passed the Illinois House with bipartisan support, according to a news release from Villa’s office.
“Through my experience as a school social worker, I know firsthand the importance of early intervention with children and providing counseling for their mental health needs,” Villa stated in the news release. “I am proud that the first piece of legislation I passed out of the House will help to teach our children about mental health and wellness by increasing mental health education in schools.”
The bill now advances to the state Senate. For more information, contact Villa’s constituent services office at 630-326-9319 or StateRepKarinaVilla@gmail.com.
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BATAVIA – State Rep. Karina Villa, D-West Chicago, is hosting a number of citizen advisory committee meetings this spring in the TriCities area.
“As state representative, it is vital that I understand the opinions and viewpoints of my neighbors, and talk through upcoming legislative proposals with a learned group of citizens that hold many differing perspectives,” said Villa in a news release. “These advisory committees will allow me to learn from my neighbors, who represent decades of different careers and experiences, and open a civil discourse on the direction they would like to see for Illinois.”
According to the release, Villa will regularly host citizen advisory committee meetings to help her better represent the differing views of area residents and update taxpayers on current legislation pending before the General Assembly.
Her upcoming advisory committee meetings will be held on the following dates and locations:
Education – Contact: Nick Caltagirone / Brian Turnbaugh at education.49th@gmail.com
April 25, 7 p.m. – Comfort Inn & Suites, 1555 E. Fabyan Parkway, Geneva
May 16, 7 p.m. – St. Charles Municipal Bldg., 2 East Main Street, St. Charles
Mental Health – Contact: Victor Swanson & Kate Cuneo mentalheath.49th@gmail.com
April 24, 7 pm – Panera Bread, 154 W. Wilson St., Batavia
May 23, 7 p.m. – Comfort Inn & Suites, 1555 E. Fabyan Parkway, Geneva
April 8, 10 a.m. at St. Charles Library, 1 S 6th Avenue, St. Charles
May 20, 10 a.m. at the Holmstadt, 700 W. Fabyan Parkway, Batavia
Small Business – Contact: Brenda Hernandez smbusiness.49th@gmail.com
April 5, 9 a.m. at Double Yolk, 1555 Butterfield Rd., Aurora
May 10, 9 a.m. at Panera Bread, 154 W. Wilson St., Batavia
Youth – Contact: John Le & Lark Cowart youth.49th@gmail.com
April 28, 1 p.m. – TBD
June 1, 1 p.m. – TBD
June 30, 1 p.m. – Comfort Inn & Suites, 1555 E. Fabyan Parkway, Geneva
For more information about the advisory committees, or to RSVP, please contact the assigned head of the committee, or contact (630) 326-9319 or staterepkarinavilla@gmail.com.
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Battery-operated smoke detectors weren’t sufficient to save about 30 dogs who perished in a January kennel fire near West Chicago.
State Rep. Diane Pappas says the outcome could have been less devastating had the two-story building been equipped with more advanced fire safety measures.
Illinois lawmakers now are considering legislation to require pet boarding businesses to install a fire alarm system that automatically notifies first responders when it’s activated.
House Bill 3390 aims to protect animals kept overnight at kennels that do not have either 24-hour staffing or sprinkler systems in place, said Pappas, an Itasca Democrat who introduced the measure this month.
"We want to make sure anybody who takes in animals on a for-profit basis (is) actually protecting them from this horrendous death by fire," she said. "Often, it takes a tragedy to make us aware of a deficiency in the law, and unfortunately that’s what happened here. We’re trying to fix that."
According to the proposal, kennel operators who don’t comply would be denied a new license, or the renewal of an existing license, by the Illinois Department of Agriculture. The House Labor and Commerce Committee is expected to vote Wednesday on the bill, which would amend the Animal Welfare Act.
The legislation has support from the Illinois Fire Chiefs Association, said board President and Naperville Fire Chief Mark Puknaitis.
Though battery-operated detectors can be used as a last resort, he said, hard-wired alarm systems allow for a quicker response from fire crews, which limits building and property damage and reduces the risk of injury or death.
"We’re happy to see any kind of legislation that promotes fire safety and that provides methods of community risk reduction," Puknaitis said. "Fire can spread exponentially in a matter of minutes. We do everything we can to try to minimize that."
Many communities already are requiring automatic fire notification systems or sprinklers in homes and other new construction, he said, so it makes sense to add fire safety requirements in locations where animals are kept overnight.
"Those pets are like family members to people," Puknaitis said. "We want to make sure that we provide protection to those pets and those animals, just as we do to human beings."
On the morning of the Jan. 14 kennel fire near West Chicago, operator Garrett Mercado left for "just a few hours" and returned to find a glow coming from the second-floor apartment where he lived, he told the Daily Herald in January. The fire was producing thick smoke and intense heat by the time he arrived.
A DuPage County sheriff’s deputy spotted the blaze while on patrol about 5:30 a.m., alerted dispatchers and helped Mercado free some dogs from cages. Carol Stream firefighters then battled the fire to rescue as many dogs as possible and bring them to the front yard. Roughly 30 were saved.
The kennel, licensed under the name "The Bully Life Animal Services," had passed its last routine inspection in September, though it fell under scrutiny on social media after critics raised questions about its cleanliness and staffing.
Mercado said he knew the facility was a "fixer upper" and made plans with the landlord to complete improvements; installing a sprinkler system was "at the top of the list."
The cost of retrofitting a facility with more advanced alarm systems could be an issue for some boarding businesses, especially those housed in antiquated buildings, said Kristen Funk, executive director of the Naperville Area Humane Society. But she says there’s no question the added protection is necessary.
"I think it’s very important, especially if there’s not staff there all the time," Funk said. "Animals are in cages and can’t get out, so to have the notification or sprinkler systems — I couldn’t agree more with it."
The proposed law would apply to any licensed kennel operation, with no exemptions for existing boarding facilities, Pappas said. "It’s a dangerous situation for both the pets and the people, so my view is, it doesn’t help anyone if you’re grandfathered into this," she said.
Republican state Sen. Don DeWitte filed a similar bill weeks ago calling for the installation of sprinkler systems in all pet boarding facilities. After realizing Pappas had parallel legislation that was moving quicker through the approval process, DeWitte said, he stood down on his bill and pre-filed to be the sponsor of House Bill 3390 when it moves to the Senate.
"My concern, as was her concern, was to get something put on the books that would give pet owners security when turning their loved ones — i.e. their pets — over to kennel operators," said DeWitte, of St. Charles. "We were both touched by the unfortunate fire in West Chicago several weeks ago. We both agree this is viable legislation."
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State Rep. Natalie Manley, D-Joliet, is sponsoring House Bill 834, which recently passed out of the Illinois House with overwhelming bipartisan support, and would bar employers from asking job candidates their salary history.
“We know that discriminatory hiring practices, like asking job candidates for their salary history, can lock women into career-long wage inequity. Women are often paid less than their male counterparts, beginning as early as their first jobs,” Manley said. “I am proud to have helped lead the fight to pass this legislation. I am now circulating a petition to show the state Senate and Governor Pritzker that equal pay for equal work is want the people of Illinois want.”
Manley’s measure, House Bill 834, will crack down on discriminatory hiring practices that can lock women into career-long wage inequality. This measure recently passed out of the Illinois House with vast bipartisan support, and now advances to the state Senate for consideration.
“Since a gender wage gap still exists, House Bill 834 will strengthen the Illinois Equal Pay Act by making it a violation for employers to ask job applicants about their prior salary or to confirm it with their employer, in order to stop perpetuating unequal pay,” said Melissa Josephs, Director of Equal Opportunity Policy with Women Employed. “Instead, employers should hire employees based on their skills and experience and pay them based on their budget and the going rate for the job.”
Manley is now circulating an equal pay petition, collecting signatures of local residents to show that equal pay for equal work is long overdue, and is an idea supported by many Illinoisans. For more information, contact Rep. Manley’s constituent service office at RepManley@gmail.comRepManley@gmail.com or (815) 725-2741.
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To honor her selection as Teacher of the Year, state Rep. Katie Stuart (D-Edwardsville) welcomed Edwardsville High School special education teacher Susan Converse to the Capitol to congratulate her on the House floor and add her name to the official legislative record.
“Susan Converse has stood out among her peers with her dedication and service to her students,” Stuart said. “I congratulate Mrs. Converse for all she has done for the Edwardsville School District and community.”
Converse began her career in education in 1995 after working as an education reporter. She has taught students with emotional and mental disabilities at all levels and served as a school administrator. In 2016, Converse opened a student-run coffee and pastry shop called the Tiger Den at Edwardsville High School. Under her guidance, students with disabilities gained skills and independence by running all aspects of the Tiger Den’s operations. In addition to enriching the lives of students, the Tiger Den has donated more than $10,000 to local families and community development in the past two years.
Because of her dedication to her students’ success, Converse was named the Illinois State Board of Education’s 2019 Teacher of the Year. Stuart recently passed House Resolution 147 congratulating Converse on this honor and presented her with a copy of the resolution at the Capitol.
A bill introduced by state Rep. Lance Yednock, D-Ottawa, would allow firefighter academy graduates to receive a brief history of the labor movement for firefighters passed out of the House Labor and Commerce Committee.
House Bill 2215 allows for candidates to receive a brief presentation that provides them with a historical perspective on the labor movement in the fire service.
“The labor movement has been a driving force behind new advances in safety, better pay and benefits for firefighters in Illinois, and I think it’s important that new firefighters understand its importance,” Yednock said in a press statement. “I’m proud to have worked with firefighters representing all parts of our state on a bill that can provide new education about how much the labor movement has done when it comes to keeping firefighters safe as they continue to serve our communities in some of the most difficult and dangerous times.” �
The education also helps provide the information how the two major labor unions representing firefighters have been the driving force behind nearly every advance and improvement in fire and emergency services over the last 101 years, Yednock’s press release said.
House Bill 2215 passed committee and now awaits full passage on the floor of the Illinois House of Representatives.
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State Representative Lance Yednock met with members of the Future Farmers of America during their visit to the Capitol this past week.
Yednock met with members of the Streator Chapter of the FFA during the annual Illinois FFA Day at the Capitol, where FFA members from across the state met with their state legislators. The Ottawa Democrat is a member of the House Agriculture & Conservation Committee.
Yednock said that organizations like the FFA allow our young people to grow and develop, and that he was pleased to see a large number of students from the 76th district.
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When I met earlier this year with Tamar Friedman, her discomfort was obvious, not just in her face but in the constant motion of her hands as she gently rubbed fingers together in an effort to ease the tingling sensation in them.
“It’s so hard,” she said, when I asked what it’s like to keep up with her duties as a school social worker, wife and mother of two small children while also dealing with this ongoing pain.
But what caused even more stress as the 45-year-old Naperville woman battles a debilitating, nerve-destroying disease is the energy she’s had to exert over the past year to get help from her health insurance company.
That’s what Friedman was forced to do ever since learning just before Christmas the treatment approved by her neurologist was denied by Blue Cross Blue Shield, despite the fact the company had previously paid for a six-month trial her family insist made a world of difference in her health and her life.
The disease is not well-known, says her sister Heather Friedman, which is part of the problem. Tamar was enjoying an active life with husband Jason Dyhouse, a band teacher at Granger Middle School, and their two children, ages 4 and 8, until about 20 months ago when she began experiencing tingling in her feet that gradually turned into painful spasms traveling up her body, along with crushing headaches that led to dizziness and blurred vision.
After months of doctor visits, including a trip to Mayo Clinic, she was finally diagnosed at the University of Illinois at Chicago Medical Center with autoimmune small fiber polyneuropathy, a relatively new disorder only recently linked to antibody FGFR3, which attacks and damages small nerves in the body.
Also only recently, according to the Friedmans, a medical study showed that an extremely expensive intravenous infusion of healthy blood plasma would successfully lower the levels of antibody that were causing her symptoms.
The insurance company, they said, refused to cover the treatment at first because it was considered off-label. But after Friedman was hospitalized almost a year ago, Blue Cross agreed to a six-month trial of intravenous plasma infusions, delivered by a nurse in her home, four days at a time once a month for half a year.
The infusions were life-changing, Tamar Friedman says. As the antibody causing her disorder decreased to normal levels and her nerves regenerated, symptoms were almost completely eliminated. That’s when her doctor requested insurance coverage for a six-month continuation of the treatment at half-dose.
But Blue Cross refused the doctor’s request, and after he appealed the denial in October, Friedman received a letter from the insurance company days before Christmas informing her that appeal was also denied. Although the insurance company had paid for the initial treatment that got excellent results, Blue Cross Blue Shield claimed the intravenous plasma treatment had not been deemed medically necessary.
Repeated attempts for a response from Blue Cross Blue Shield were not successful.
“Getting the denial was awful,” said Friedman. “It is hard enough to deal with a debilitating disease … you feel so powerless. And these people are making decisions that affect my life and my kids’ lives.”
As each week passed and her symptoms worsened, Dyhouse, her husband, said he had to once more take over her household duties as his wife “just tried to get through each day.”
In early January, Friedman’s parents paid $11,000 out of their own retirement fund for a treatment which, like before, brought tremendous relief. But also like before, symptoms gradually returned.
Because the couple depends on two incomes, Friedman has no choice but to continue working at Currier Elementary School in West Chicago, which she says has been “so understanding” of her situation.
Still, at the end of the work day, “I am depleted … all I want to do is lay down and sleep.”
The family, however, chose not to lie down for the insurance company. After Friedman’s doctor submitted yet another request for coverage, the couple hired a health care advocate. Also, state Rep. Stephanie Kifowit, D-Oswego, got involved. She contacted a government liaison with Blue Cross Blue Shield about what she described as “a serious situation” and was told the insurance company would “research the case and review Friedman’s file.”
Things can fall through the cracks, which is why follow-up is so important, of course. But if you are not getting the response you feel is necessary, Kifowit insisted, call your elected officials.
“We make laws,” she said. “But what most people forget or fail to understand is that we are also here to be an advocate” for residents.
Because elected representatives have “a lot of contacts with industries and government liaisons,” Kifowit added, ”we can cut through the red tape and get it in the hands of people who need to know how to fix it.”
Some or all of the above must have made a difference in this case: A couple weeks ago Friedman said she was notified verbally that six more treatments were approved, which will give her at least 24 weeks of relief.
While there have been some cases of the disease going into remission, “no one really knows for sure what will happen because it’s so new,” Friedman said, fully aware that “we may have to go back to the drawing board and keep requesting.”
Still, Kifowit expressed optimism this medical dilemma appears to be heading toward a positive outcome.
And that’s what the Friedmans are holding on to for now.
“I certainly don’t like the process. And it’s unfortunate we have to go to such lengths,” said Tamar. “But I’m so grateful relief will be coming.”
STATE LAWMAKERS ARE WORKING ON A COUPLE OF BILLS TO HELP INCREASE ORGAN DONATION IN ILLINOIS.
THERE’S A REAL NEED FOR LIVE ORGAN DONORS TO PROVIDE KIDNEYS AND BONE MARROW TO THOSE WHO ARE SICK SAYS VILLA PARK REPRESENTATIVE DEB CONROY. HER BILL MAKES SURE DONORS AREN’T DISCRIMINATED AGAINST WHEN IT COMES TO LIFE INSURANCE PREMIUMS AND TAKING TIME OFF OF WORK. ADDITONALLY:
A SECOND BILL OFFERS A TAX CREDIT TO EMPLOYERS WHO GIVE WORKERS 30 DAYS PAID LEAVE FOR AN ORGAN DONATION SAYS MEGAN CRAIG WITH THE NATIONAL KIDNEY FOUNDATION OF ILLINOIS.
PEOPLE WANTING TO DONATE A KIDNEY OR BONE MARROW TO HELP SAVE A LIFE OFTEN RUN INTO ROADBLOCKS AT WORK.
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Working for Illinois Caucus 