BOOK TODAY: IHA Leadership Summit Hotel Discount Ends Tomorrow
IHA’s
reduced hotel rate for IHA Leadership Summit expires this Friday, Aug. 22. If you’re planning an overnight stay, now is the time to reserve your room at the Hilton Chicago/Oak Brook Hills Resort & Conference Center, the Summit venue.
We encourage hospital and health system leaders and teams from across the state to join us for the Sept. 25-26 IHA signature event. Registration discounts are available through Sept. 11. The Summit—“
Unity Amid Uncertainty”—is a vital moment to align with peers, embrace bold thinking and chart a powerful course forward for Illinois healthcare.
Learn more about the Summit on our
program webpage and in special video messages from IHA President and CEO
A.J. Wilhelmi; IHA Board Chair
Shawn Vincent, President and CEO of Loyola Medicine; and a
third video with Wilhelmi, Trina Casner, President and CEO of Pana Community Hospital, and Will Davis, Illinois Region President of Deaconess Illinois.
CMS Initiative to Ensure Medicaid, CHIP Enrollees Immigration Status
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) yesterday
announced the launch of a national initiative to verify Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) enrollees’ immigration status and ensure they meet citizenship requirements.
CMS said it will begin sending states monthly enrollment reports identifying individuals whose citizenship or immigration status could not be confirmed through federal databases; CMS sent the first set of reports to states yesterday and said all states will receive the report over the course of the month. States will be responsible for taking quick action to review the cases and verify the citizenship or immigration status of the identified individuals. States may request additional documentation if necessary and are expected to take appropriate actions to ensure compliance with federal eligibility rules. Individuals who do not meet immigration requirements may only receive limited services in certain circumstances.
Apply for the 2026 Dick Davidson NOVA Award by Oct. 14
The American Hospital Association (AHA) is accepting applications through Oct. 14 for the 2026 AHA Dick Davidson NOVA Award. This award recognizes hospitals and health systems that demonstrate outstanding collaboration with community partners to improve health outcomes and community well-being. Eligible programs must be at least two years old, show clear evidence of impact and sustainability, and be replicable in other communities. Up to five winners will be honored at the AHA Healthier Together Conference, May 12-14, 2026, in Dallas.
Click here for more information.
Rural Patients Face Growing Travel Times for Surgery
Rural Americans are traveling farther than ever for surgical care, an Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality-funded study in
JAMA found. Using Medicare data from over 12 million admissions between 2010 and 2020, researchers examined trends in travel time for 16 common surgical procedures. The percentage of rural patients traveling more than 60 minutes rose from 37% to 44% over that decade. Median travel times also increased from 43 to 48 minutes for low-risk procedures and from 64 to 69 minutes for high-risk ones. In contrast, non-rural patients saw much smaller increases. The greatest growth in travel burden was seen in lower risk surgeries, while some high-risk procedures remained stable. The findings highlight a widening access gap for rural patients, likely driven by hospital closures, provider shortages and care centralization. The trend underscores a growing need for policy and infrastructure solutions.
New Statewide Direct College Admissions Program Announced
Gov. JB Pritzker, the Illinois Board of Higher Education, Illinois Community College Board and Illinois Student Assistance Commission yesterday
launched One Click College Admit—a statewide direct admissions program for Illinois public universities and community colleges. Through One Click College Admit, high school seniors and community college transfer students in Illinois will receive college acceptance into the state’s public universities by meeting only one criterion for admission: grade point average (GPA). This new program waives applications, application fees, essays and letters of recommendation for students. High school seniors can now begin getting automatic acceptances to Illinois public colleges and universities through One Click College Admit for enrollment in fall 2026 simply by creating a Common App account and entering basic biographical information and their GPA.
