IHA 2025 Spring End of Session Report
The 2025 state legislative session resulted in several significant outcomes affecting Illinois hospitals and health systems. Throughout the session, IHA worked to advance critical legislation benefiting the hospital community statewide.
Importantly, IHA worked on your behalf to closely track and influence hundreds of other bills and issues—successfully opposing or favorably modifying bills that would have imposed unnecessary or onerous burdens or requirements on hospitals and health systems. Click here to access IHA’s 2025 End of Session Report, which offers an overview of the notable bills filed this session affecting hospitals and healthcare. To help navigate, we have created specific links taking you directly to each section:
The infographic “2025 Illinois General Assembly by the Numbers” provides a big picture look at the volume and magnitude of the bills in play.
We appreciate the strong support and advocacy of our members that enabled IHA and the hospital community to work together to achieve the best possible outcomes on our key issues.
Staff contact: Nichole Magalis
Workforce Strategies: The Link Between Recognition and Retention
Pizza parties, branded swag and shoutouts during staff meetings have their role in strengthening employee engagement, but they’re not enough. A recent blog post from IHA Strategic Partner Medical Solutions encourages healthcare leaders to pair such recognition efforts with meaningful actions that address the deeper reasons clinicians feel undervalued or overlooked.
The post, “Beyond Pizza Parties: What Clinicians Really Want to Feel Valued,” highlights ways to address burnout and job satisfaction, including:
- Inviting clinicians to share their experiences and suggestions regularly, then acting on the feedback in visible, tangible ways;
- Celebrating unique, individual contributions daily, ensuring recognition is personal, specific and timely; and
- Prioritizing policies that reduce burnout, such as programs targeting workload management, staffing shortages and mental health support, then communicating these efforts to staff.
These strategies can help hospitals move beyond symbolic gestures to put in place systems that show clinicians they are valued. The blog post points to a McKinsey survey finding 75% of nurse respondents cited feeling undervalued as a contributing factor in quitting their job. The survey also showed 56% of nurses said being recognized for their contributions was one of the most effective ways to support their well-being.
Recognition is fundamental and shouldn’t be taken lightly, according to Medical Solutions, a leading healthcare talent ecosystem provider and IHA Strategic Partner since 2018. See IHA’s Medical Solutions’ flyer. Hospitals seeking to re-energize and retain clinicians can learn more about the company’s services by contacting Tony Lehman at 402-295-3600 or tony.lehman@medicalsolutions.com.
Staff contact: Gary Drain
ALERT: Joint Cybersecurity Advisory on Interlock Ransomware
The FBI, Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services, and Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center released a joint cybersecurity advisory yesterday detailing observed tactics, techniques, and procedures and indicators of compromise associated with an Interlock ransomware variant. The Interlock ransomware variant has been targeting critical infrastructure and businesses in North America and Europe. The advisory said the activity is financially motivated, with cyber criminals choosing victims based on opportunity, then disrupting their ability to deliver essential services in order to demand payment. Organizations are encouraged to review the advisory and implement the recommendations in the “Mitigations” section to reduce the likelihood and impact of Interlock ransomware incidents.
Illinois Weather and Public Health Response Summit – Submit Abstracts
Illinois public health professionals and community leaders from across the state will come together on Nov. 12-13 for a two-day Illinois Weather and Public Health Response Summit to focus on addressing the health impacts of adverse weather events. The Illinois Dept. of Public Health is encouraging submission of abstracts for consideration at the Summit. Potential abstract topics include those related to communications, policy, data or data improvement, one health, community outreach, health department response, and provider mitigation. All abstracts must be submitted electronically through the conference submission form by Aug. 15. Click here for more information about abstract submission.
