State Rep. Sue Scherer asked fellow lawmakers April 6 to vote for legislation she said would protect patients harmed by the contract dispute between Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois and Springfield Clinic. Scherer, D-Decatur, whose 96th House district includes parts of Springfield’s east side and eastern Sangamon County, was unsuccessful in securing passage […]
Dean Olsen
Dean Olsen is a senior staff writer for Illinois Times. He can be reached at:
dolsen@illinoistimes.com, 217-679-7810 or @DeanOlsenIT.
Posted inNews
A rocky recovery
People are showing up at Gateway Foundation sicker than ever from drug and alcohol addiction because of various factors at play in the third year of the COVID-19 pandemic. Many people with substance-use disorder who walk through the doors of Gateway’s Springfield Treatment Center begin to shut down physically and lose consciousness. That’s according to […]
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State still seeking answers from Blue Cross
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois, which has agreed to pay a $339,000 state fine stemming from the insurer’s almost year-long contract dispute with Springfield Clinic, says the clinic is making unreasonable demands. Blue Cross divisional senior vice president Krishna G. Ramachandran said the for-profit, multi-specialty clinic, in its “first very specific counter-offer,” is […]
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Closing the digital divide
A Springfield steering committee planning for the city’s expansion of affordable broadband internet services, especially for residents of the city’s north and east sides, is receiving technical assistance from a new state program. Springfield is one of six communities selected by the administration of Gov. JB Pritzker to be in the first group served by […]
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Another downtown YMCA possible
YMCA of Springfield members have received emails asking whether they would like to see a second branch open downtown inside the future Springfield-Sangamon County Transportation Center. But the idea, being floated just a little over a year after a new $33 million downtown Y opened at Fourth and Carpenter streets, is preliminary, and there is […]
Posted inNews
Another downtown YMCA possible
YMCA of Springfield members have received emails asking whether they would like to see a second branch open downtown inside the future Springfield-Sangamon County Transportation Center. But the idea, being floated just a little over a year after a new $33 million downtown Y opened at Fourth and Carpenter streets, is preliminary, and there is […]
Posted inNews
State still seeking answers from Blue Cross
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois, which has agreed to pay a $339,000 state fine stemming from the insurer’s almost year-long contract dispute with Springfield Clinic, says the clinic is making unreasonable demands. Blue Cross divisional senior vice president Krishna G. Ramachandran said the for-profit, multi-specialty clinic, in its “first very specific counter-offer,” is […]
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A reason to smile
Susan Wilham and her husband have had to spend hours on the phone with their insurer, fork out hundreds of dollars for medical services insurance wouldn’t pay and worry whether future oral surgeries for their 16-year-old son will be covered at all. The struggles these Springfield residents have gone through are common for families dealing […]
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Big plans for the budget
The final fiscal 2023 budget for Springfield city government includes $6 million to purchase seven new fire vehicles and $10 million to build three new fire stations. City Council members passed 16 amendments in February before finalizing the budget for the 2023 fiscal year that began March 1. The result was a net increase of […]
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Blue Cross fined $339,000 by state
Gov. JB Pritzker’s state insurance department has fined the parent company of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois $339,000 for failing to notify the state last year about the removal of Springfield Clinic as an in-network provider. The Illinois Department of Insurance continues to evaluate whether Chicago-based Blue Cross’ downstate preferred-provider network is adequate […]
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Concerns over CO₂
Kathleen Campbell doesn’t want to see a pipeline carrying pressurized, liquid carbon dioxide – which can cause suffocation – installed underground less than a football field away from her home in rural Sangamon County. “How do you go to bed at night knowing you might not wake up in the morning?” Campbell, a Glenarm resident, […]
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In-network doctors in decline
State officials have asked Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois to prove that its central Illinois health care network remains adequate for meeting patients’ needs, despite the loss of more than 600 Springfield Clinic doctors and other providers from its network. The Chicago-based insurer sent documents to the Illinois Department of Insurance after the […]
