Bill Text: IL HR0726 | 2017-2018 | 100th General Assembly | Enrolled
Bill Title: Urges the Director of Public Health, the Director of Veterans' Affairs, and Governor Rauner's administration to provide a comprehensive report to the General Assembly that includes detailed timelines of what information the Illinois Veteran's Home at Quincy, the Illinois Department of Veterans' Affairs, the Illinois Department of Public Health, and Governor Rauner's administration knew, and when they knew it, with regards to the Legionnaires' disease outbreak at the Illinois Veteran's Home at Quincy. This report should also include a detailed proposal on how to contain the spread of, and end the outbreaks of, Legionnaires' disease at the Illinois Veteran's Home at Quincy in the future.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 23-1)
Status: (Passed) 2018-03-07 - Resolution Adopted as Amended 104-000-001 [HR0726 Detail]
Download: Illinois-2017-HR0726-Enrolled.html
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1 | HOUSE RESOLUTION 726
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2 | WHEREAS, Veterans of the United States Armed Forces have | ||||||
3 | dedicated themselves to serving this country with honor and | ||||||
4 | distinction; they deserve our deepest respect and gratitude, | ||||||
5 | and the State of Illinois should therefore offer the highest | ||||||
6 | level of care to veterans; and
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7 | WHEREAS, The State of Illinois operates four veterans' | ||||||
8 | homes whose purpose is to provide quality long-term care, | ||||||
9 | health services, and a supportive environment to veterans and | ||||||
10 | their spouses; and
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11 | WHEREAS, Since August 2015, 13 residents of the Illinois | ||||||
12 | Veteran's Home at Quincy have died from Legionnaires' disease, | ||||||
13 | and at least 61 residents and staff have contracted the | ||||||
14 | illness; and
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15 | WHEREAS, The first confirmed case of Legionnaires' disease | ||||||
16 | was found at the Illinois Veteran's Home at Quincy on July 24, | ||||||
17 | 2015; and
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18 | WHEREAS, According to the Illinois Department of Veterans' | ||||||
19 | Affairs (IDVA) Director Erica Jeffries, the Illinois Veteran's | ||||||
20 | Home at Quincy implemented procedures to control the outbreak | ||||||
21 | on August 21, 2015; and
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1 | WHEREAS, The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) | ||||||
2 | notified the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) | ||||||
3 | on August 23, 2015 of five confirmed cases of Legionnaires' | ||||||
4 | disease; and
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5 | WHEREAS, A Veterans' Affairs spokesperson emailed Governor | ||||||
6 | Rauner's office about the outbreak on August 24, 2015, and the | ||||||
7 | staff had internal discussions over email about the outbreak; | ||||||
8 | and
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9 | WHEREAS, Melvin Tucker, a decorated Army Air Corps veteran | ||||||
10 | from World War II contracted a fever at the Illinois Veteran's | ||||||
11 | Home at Quincy on August 21, 2015; he was given Tylenol, but as | ||||||
12 | of August 27 had not been tested for Legionnaires' disease or | ||||||
13 | given antibiotics, despite the eight confirmed cases of the | ||||||
14 | disease; Tucker was finally tested and confirmed to have | ||||||
15 | Legionnaires' disease, but passed away on August 31, 2015; and
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16 | WHEREAS, Gerald Kuhn, a former United States Army Sergeant | ||||||
17 | and World War II veteran, also fell ill during that time | ||||||
18 | period; he ran a fever and was given Tylenol; Kuhn was also not | ||||||
19 | immediately tested for Legionnaires' disease; he was taken to | ||||||
20 | the hospital three days later at his own request, after running | ||||||
21 | a 104 degree fever; he passed away on August 31, 2015; and
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1 | WHEREAS, Dolores French, resident and wife of United States | ||||||
2 | Army Korean War veteran Richard French Sr., was found dead in | ||||||
3 | her room on August 29, 2015 from Legionnaires' disease; she had | ||||||
4 | died several days earlier, but the staff was unaware of her | ||||||
5 | death; when her son called on August 28 after reading the press | ||||||
6 | release about the outbreak, they told him that she was doing | ||||||
7 | well; and
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8 | WHEREAS, After 12 deaths and at least 39 confirmed | ||||||
9 | illnesses in 2015, the Illinois Veteran's Home at Quincy had a | ||||||
10 | second outbreak of Legionnaires' disease in 2016, which led to | ||||||
11 | six more illnesses; and
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12 | WHEREAS, Another outbreak arose in the fall of 2017, during | ||||||
13 | which three more residents became ill, one of whom died, | ||||||
14 | raising the death total to 13 since 2015; and
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15 | WHEREAS, Eleven families are suing the State for | ||||||
16 | negligence, and there have been calls for investigation into | ||||||
17 | the actions of the Illinois Veteran's Home at Quincy, the | ||||||
18 | Illinois Department of Veterans' Affairs, the Illinois | ||||||
19 | Department of Public Health, and the Governor's Office, as to | ||||||
20 | whether they could have better handled the outbreak and | ||||||
21 | treatment of the residents, and whether they should have | ||||||
22 | publicized the outbreak earlier in order to afford families the | ||||||
23 | best chance to help their loved ones; therefore, be it
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1 | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE | ||||||
2 | HUNDREDTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | ||||||
3 | Governor Rauner's administration has not made this a top | ||||||
4 | priority and 13 deaths over a two year period is unacceptable; | ||||||
5 | we urge the Director of Public Health, the Director of | ||||||
6 | Veterans' Affairs, and Governor Rauner's administration to | ||||||
7 | provide a comprehensive report to the General Assembly two | ||||||
8 | weeks after the adoption of this Resolution that includes | ||||||
9 | detailed timelines of what information each of these agencies | ||||||
10 | knew, and when they knew it, with regard to the Legionnaires' | ||||||
11 | disease outbreak at the Illinois Veteran's Home at Quincy; this | ||||||
12 | report should also include a detailed proposal on how to | ||||||
13 | contain the spread of and end the outbreaks of Legionnaires' | ||||||
14 | disease at this facility in the future; and be it further
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15 | RESOLVED, That we urge that the Department of Public | ||||||
16 | Health, the Department of Veterans' Affairs, the Centers for | ||||||
17 | Disease Control and Prevention, the Illinois Governor's | ||||||
18 | Office, Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, the Office | ||||||
19 | of Management and Budget, and the Illinois Veterans' Home at | ||||||
20 | Quincy to respond to the January 18 request for all | ||||||
21 | communication between June 15, 2015 and January 12, 2018 that | ||||||
22 | contains information directly or indirectly related to or | ||||||
23 | referencing the Illinois Veterans' Home at Quincy, | ||||||
24 | particularly communication regarding directly or indirectly |
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1 | Legionnaire's disease at the Illinois Veterans' Home at Quincy, | ||||||
2 | by providing this requested information to the General | ||||||
3 | Assembly; and be it further
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4 | RESOLVED, That we urge Governor Rauner's administration to | ||||||
5 | immediately make this a top priority; and be it further
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6 | RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this Resolution be | ||||||
7 | delivered to Governor Rauner, the Illinois Department of Public | ||||||
8 | Health, and the Illinois Department of Veterans' Affairs.
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