Governor joins Stadelman and local leaders
to announce job-training funds
With Illinois continuing to face an unprecedented public health emergency as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, State Senator Steve Stadelman was joined this week by Governor J.B. Pritzker, Rockford Mayor Thomas McNamara and Lisa M. Bly-Jones, Executive Director of Workforce Connection, today to discuss investments to expand job opportunities in Rockford.
"The coronavirus pandemic is disrupting jobs and changing the skills employees need to do them,” Stadelman said. “To meet this challenge, state government and its partners need to step up to help ensure workers are equipped with the skills critical to our economic recovery.”
Workforce Connection is set to receive a $626,700 national dislocated worker grant. The goal is to create a competitive, skilled and educated workforce by providing people with employment in response to business needs. Rockford's grant will help people get back to work, providing training programs and certifications for high demand jobs in the area.
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“The Workforce Connection works every day to make sure people have job ready skills,” Stadelman said. “This grant will allow them to better provide individuals with the ability to re-enter the workforce immediately through on-the-job training programs.”
Employment Recovery grants temporarily expand capacity to serve dislocated workers in an area to meet increased demand for employment and training services following major economic dislocations like the COVID-19 pandemic.
For more information, see: news report.
Stadelman opposes Mercy decision to close mental health unit
State Senator Steve Stadelman and State Rep. Maurice A. West II voiced their disapproval to Merchyhealth's closing of its mental health unit during a hearing last week in downtown Rockford. Senator Stadelman's remarks to the Illinois Health Facilities and Services Board are below:
"It seems odd to ask this Board to deny Mercy's request to close its behavioral health unit, when the health system has effectively done so already. Still, that's precisely my request.
Mercy has stated publicly the reason for the closure is the unit's only full-time psychiatrist left the company July 19. How much advance notice did Mercy receive? Did Mercy try to find a replacement? Or did Mercy just conveniently wait until the end of the 30-day time period before its requirement of notifying the Board of this so-called "temporary" closure. Under the rules, Mercy is supposed to update the Board on the progress for correcting the issue. Clearly, Mercy had no intention of following the rules and keeping the unit open before this Board made its decision. I believe Mercy should be held accountable for its actions.
As to the larger issue of whether these inpatient beds are needed in this community, I've always heard from experts and advocates we need more inpatient services, not less. Mercy claims low demand for those beds. But why is that? This claim needs to be probed further. Advocates believe Mercy's refusal to accept the types of insurance most mental health consumers use is one reason why the hospital system reports lower patient numbers. It's a self-fulfilling prophecy. In fact, in today's Rockford Register Star, SwedishAmerican's Chief Operating Officer told the newspaper the closure of the behavioral health unit is placing pressure on remaining mental health resources in Rockford, and patients are being forced to seek help outside the area. By granting Mercy's petition, this Board will allow Mercy's leadership to abandon the very situation they're responsible for creating.
Finally, five years ago, Mercy appeared before this Board requesting to build a new hospital on Riverside Boulevard. Its slogan was "one hospital, two campuses." Mercy's President and CEO promised then that the Rockton Avenue facility located in the disadvantaged part of town would not lose anything. But the disadvantaged part of town has lost out, including level two trauma emergency services and now the behavioral health unit. This year, Mercy will receive millions of dollars more under the state's new hospital assessment program for Medicaid funding and an additional $2 million from this year's state budget to help safety-net hospitals.
The state has increased its commitment; now it’s incumbent upon Mercy to keep its promise to provide quality health care across ALL our community."
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Steve Stadelman
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Sen. Stadelman hands out t-shirts to players of canceled youth basketball competition
ROCKFORD, Ill. (WTVO) — This year’s Labor Day Youth Basketball Competition had to be canceled this year, due to the coronavirus pandemic. The competition is usually held annually at the…
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Douglas McDuff Sr. You are a good guy! Like your wife , too!
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