SPRINGFIELD, IL… State Representative Brandun Schweizer (R-Danville) passed his first bill out of the Illinois House of Representatives on April 19th, 2024. House Bill 4972 requires the Department of Central Management Services (CMS) to give advance notice of 60 days to teacher retirement system (TRS) enrollees before any changes to benefits take effect. The bill passed the House unanimously, 106-0.
“The passage of this bill out of the House moves us one step closer to protecting TRS benefit recipients. I want to thank my colleagues in the House for seeing the importance of this legislation and supporting it in the House,” said Rep. Schweizer.
CMS is the state agency tasked with managing benefits for state employees and retirees, which TRS enrollees fall under. This bill seeks to hold the agency responsible for providing advance notice when changes to health care benefits are made for those enrolled in TRS. Currently under state law, there is not a requirement stating that CMS must provide advance notice of changes to TRS enrollees.
“This bill is a small fix but makes a big impact,” said Rep. Schweizer. “Changes to health benefits are inevitable, but with this legislation, those enrolled in TRS will have transparency on where their insurance is accepted. Additionally, those enrollees will now have time to find new medical facilities that accept their insurance when changes take effect, which was not the case before,” concluded Rep. Schweizer.
HB 4972 now moves to the Senate for consideration. To follow its progress, visit ILGA.gov.
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