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I
believe senior citizens deserve to live financially
independent and in their won homes. I have
consistently supported legislation to lower taxes
for seniors, protect against fraud, improve
prescription drug coverage and increase access to
health care.
Preserving
Benefits for Our Older Residents
When the new federal Medicare prescription drug
benefit was approved, it threatened many Illinois
seniors who have come to rely on state drug benefit
programs with less coverage. To ensure our
older residents continue to get the benefits they
deserve, Yarbrough supported the
No Senior Left Behind Act,
which ensures that seniors enrolled in
Circuit Breaker
and SeniorCare
programs do not receive less benefits if they choose
to participate in Medicare part D. SB 973 was
signed into law.
Keeping Seniors
in their Own Homes
Home-based health
care not only saves the state money, it keeps
families together. I supported House Bill 130,
which improves the quality of home health care
agencies by allowing them to purchase, store and
dispense potentially lifesaving medicines.
I also support
House Bill 3851, which prevents the unnecessary
institutionalization of our older residents.
The bill creates a commission to strengthen state
efforts to promote alternatives to nursing homes.
I also supported a $45.9 million budget allotment to
enable more seniors to receive care in their own
homes.
Protecting
Seniors Against Identity Theft
Fraud and identity
theft are among the fastest growing crimes in
Illinois and seniors are increasingly targeted.
To protect seniors citizens from becoming victims of
these crimes, I sponsored House Bill 1058, which
allows victims to place a security freeze on their
credit reports. The freeze prohibits credit
reporting agencies from changing or releasing
personal information until a police investigation is
completed.
I also supported
House Bill 1633, which requires companies to notify
consumers if their personal information falls into
the hands of an unauthorized third party.
Together, these measures give consumers new tools to
fight identity thieves.
All of the House
Bills mentioned above were signed into law. |
