SPRINGFIELD – Nicotine companies are creating vapes that are designed to look like school supplies and therefore are easily concealed, leading State Senator Julie Morrison to pass a law to prevent these products from being advertised to children.

“With more high school students using vapes today than cigarettes 10 years ago, youth e-cigarette use is a public health threat,” said Morrison (D-Lake Forest). “This law will prohibit tobacco companies from pulling the wool over the eyes of educators and guardians whose job it is to keep kids safe.”

Educators have complained to the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services about finding electronic cigarettes on school property that are designed to look like school supplies such as highlighters, erasers and pencil sharpeners. Senate Bill 2662 will prohibit the advertising, marketing or promoting of an electronic cigarette in a manner that is likely to cause a person to mistake it for an object that is anything other than what it is, a tobacco product.

“As chair of the Senate Health and Human Services Committee, I have taken a strong stand on the issue of nicotine use,” said Morrison. “This law will protect our children from creating a habit that can have harmful long term effects.”

Senate Bill 2662 was signed into law Friday and takes effect Jan. 1.

SPRINGFIELD – To ensure consistent quality of care for residents when their nursing home changes ownership, State Senator Julie Morrison championed a new law requiring facilities to develop comprehensive transition plans.

“Nursing home residents should always receive high-quality care, even during facility ownership transitions” said Morrison (D-Lake Forest). “This law requires transfer plans from current owners to new owners to ensure nothing gets over looked.”

Senate Bill 3115 will require owners of a facility to submit a transition plan detailing how resident care and appropriate staffing levels will be maintained throughout the process of shifting ownership. 

According to the Illinois Department of Public Health, past changes of ownership have taken place without a clear and concise transfer plan that assures appropriate staffing and quality of care. This issue will be remedied by this new law by providing clear steps facilities must take during ownership changes.

“Medical staff have been at dangerously low levels during past transitions,” said Morrison. “The responsibilities of making sure a nursing home facility is properly staffed and that residents are taken care of does not go away just because of a change in ownership.”

Senate Bill 3115 was signed into law Friday and takes effect Jan. 1, 2025.

SPRINGFIELD – To help ease the financial strain experienced by people with diabetes, State Senator Julie Morrison sponsored a new law to expand insurance coverage for medically necessary glucose monitors and related supplies.

“High costs that come with managing diabetes can put an unnecessary economic burden on families,” said Morrison (D-Lake Forest). “This law will ensure people with any type of diabetes receive crucial medical care.”

Senate Bill 3414 will require insurance companies to cover glucose monitors, related supplies, and training in the use of glucose monitors for individuals diagnosed with any form of diabetes. Those obtaining a prior authorization for a CGM prescription will have cost-sharing waived on a one-month’s supply of CGMs and a transmitter, if needed.

Previous law required coverage for diabetic individuals with type 1 and type 2. Morrison’s initiative expands this to any form of diabetes, securing coverage for medically necessary glucose monitors and related supplies for the 1.3 million people in the state who have this chronic health condition.

“Just adding a continuous glucose monitor to a patient’s already established care plan, without making any other medication changes, will bring their diabetes under better control,” said Emma Daisy, MD and board president of the Illinois Academy of Family Physicians.

Senate Bill 3414 was signed into law Monday.

SPRINGFIELD – Standing alongside advocates from various health care organizations as well as the State Bar Association at a press conference Wednesday, State Senator Julie Morrison outlined her initiative to create a state electronic registry which will store treatment preferences for critically ill individuals.

“How much or how little treatment a person gets at their end-of-life should be up to each individual instead of the one-size-fits-all approach,” said Morrison (D-Lake Forest). “This measure will enable physicians to access forms detailing patients’ wishes in a single, accessible location.”

Senate Bill 2644 would establish a statewide electronic registry that will contain Physician Orders for Life Sustaining Treatment forms, which lay out what type of medical treatment a patient does and does not want. POLST forms can help health care practitioners to uphold a person’s wishes regarding their care.