The following is a statement on behalf of Alzheimer’s Association Illinois Chapter, Illinois Alliance for Retired Americans, Health & Medicine Policy Research Group, Jane Addams Senior Caucus, Caring Across Generations, and SEIU Healthcare Illinois in response to the withdrawal of rules that would have forced 36,000 vulnerable Illinois seniors out of the Community Care Program and into the unproven and untested Community Reinvestment Program:

“Our coalition welcomes news that the Department on Aging will be withdrawing their prior Community Reinvestment Program (CRP) rules from the Joint Committee on Administrative Rules (JCAR), and we are ready to continue the work of building a stronger Community Care Program that will meet the needs of future aging Illinoisans while protecting their health, safety, and dignity.

“Our coalition has opposed the CRP rules since they first appeared in the Governor’s FY17 budget proposal and since then they have been rejected by advocates, seniors who stood to be impacted, caregivers, senior service providers, and by the General Assembly in their recent bipartisan budget vote. We want to thank state lawmakers who stood up for Illinois seniors throughout this process. We are especially grateful for the leadership of State Senator Dan Biss and State Representatives Greg Harris and Anna Moeller.

“As we have stated from day one, we are ready and willing to work with IDOA, the Rauner administration, and the new Community Care Program Services Task Force to strengthen the successful Community Care Program to utilize each taxpayer dollar as efficiently as possible while simultaneously enabling Illinoisans to age in our communities with the services and support they need.”