Illinois § 3

§ 3.

Legislative intent. The General Assembly finds that those who have served their country honorably in military service and who are residing in this State deserve access to affordable, comprehensive health insurance. Many veterans are uninsured and unable to afford healthcare. This lack of healthcare, including preventative care, often exacerbates health conditions. The effects of lack of insurance negatively impact those residents of the State who are insured because the cost of paying for care to the uninsured is often shifted to those who have insurance in the form of higher health insurance premiums. It is, therefore, the intent of this legislation to provide access to affordable health insurance for veterans and their spouses residing in Illinois who are unable to afford such coverage. However, the State has only a limited amount of resources, and the General Assembly therefore declares that while it intends to cover as many such veterans and spouses as possible, the State may not be able to cover every eligible person who qualifies for this Program as a matter of entitlement due to limited funding. (Source: P.A. 95-755, eff. 7-25-08; 96-45, eff. 7-15-09.)