Department of Public Health Director Dr. Sameer Vohra told lawmakers Wednesday the agency is looking to create a “unified vision” for the state’s healthcare system coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic. [Health News Illinois]
 
He told the Senate Appropriations-Health and Human Services Committee that their proposal is a commitment to responding to the lessons learned from the pandemic, including the need for unity among the various health agencies across the state.
 
“(The) budget is an important step in building a unified vision for health that will make the health of every community in Illinois stronger,” Vohra said.
 
The plan includes steps Vohra laid out in an appearance before the House last month, including a $45 million investment in the health data system around infection control and long-term care facilities as well as $7 million to enhance public health communication.
 
The budget also calls for an $8.5 million investment to help the agency identify and quickly prevent the spread of new and emerging illnesses.
 
The plan designates $18 million to ease access to reproductive healthcare, including the creation of a navigation hotline, training to increase the number of abortion providers and a consultation program for high-risk patients.
 
In other business, Vohra said they continue work on the community health worker program, which includes drafting rules and looking at some of the best practices across the country.
 
“One of the many lessons around COVID-19 was that we need to be able to create the community-led and community-built solutions," Vohra said. "They'll be sustainable and they'll be targeted towards what the community's needs are because they know their communities better than than anybody."
 
Finding which solutions will work best in each community remains a challenge, he said, as something that works in Chicago may not work in a downstate community like Effingham.
 
Last year, lawmakers passed long-term care rate reform, and Vohra said the rollout is making "some good progress."
 
“We meet with the industry regularly, we're meeting with our different advisory boards on that issue, to try to deal with the circumstances as best as possible,” he said. “It continues to be an incredible priority for our agency.”

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