SPRINGFIELD – State Senator Julie Morrison (D-Deerfield) issued the following statement this evening after voting in support of House Bill 1438, which would create a well-regulated, legal cannabis market in Illinois.

“Legalizing adult-use cannabis will help eliminate the illicit market for drug sales while ensuring the entire process is regulated and taxed like any other sale. This legislation protects the rights of municipalities who do not wish to have cannabis dispensaries operating in their community, includes protections for employers to maintain zero-tolerance work policies and keeps cannabis out of the hands of individuals under the age of 21.

“I would like to thank the many constituents for contacting me throughout the last few weeks and months as this proposal has evolved and developed this spring.”

Read more about House Bill 1438

SPRINGFIELD – The burial benefit for law enforcement officers and firefighters killed in the line of duty would be increased under a proposal by State Senator Julie Morrison (D-Deerfield) that passed the Senate recently.

“No family of a fallen officer or firefighter should have to worry about not being able to afford to bury their loved one,” Morrison said. “These individuals selflessly dedicated their lives in the protection of our neighbors and communities, and this is the least we as a state can do to honor their sacrifice.”

Currently, the state burial benefit for firefighters, State Police officers or local law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty is $10,000. Morrison’s plan – contained in House Bill 2028 – would increase that benefit to $20,000, acknowledging the ever-increasing costs associated with burials. Neither the benefit for State Police officers nor the benefit for local law enforcement officers and firefighters has been raised since its creation in the late 1990s.

SPRINGFIELD – Students with epilepsy would be better protected at school under a proposal by State Senator Julie Morrison (D-Deerfield) that passed the Senate recently.

“With a long-term risk of recurrent seizures, children with epilepsy require individuals around them to be able to effectively respond should a seizure occur,” Morrison said. “By developing a plan that lays out the unique set of health care needs of students with epilepsy, schools are ensuring they are fully prepared to both treat and manage a disorder that affects 470,000 children nationwide.”

Morrison’s proposal – contained in House Bill 1475 – creates the Seizure Smart School Act, which would require the development of a plan for students with epilepsy that includes training for employees and care aides on how to handle students with the disorder.

SPRINGFIELD – Insurers would be required to cover medically necessary epinephrine injectors for minors under a proposal by State Senator Julie Morrison (D-Deerfield) that passed the Senate recently.

“With steady increases in food allergies and other serious allergic conditions, we should be doing everything we can to expand access to lifesaving drugs and medicines,” Morrison said. “No child with a serious allergy should be without an epinephrine injector because they cannot afford one.”

Epinephrine injectors – commonly known by the specific brand name EpiPen – deliver the life-saving drug epinephrine to individuals experiencing a severe allergic reaction. Epinephrine works by narrowing blood vessels and opening lung airways, reversing the symptoms of an allergic reaction that, if left untreated, can cause death.