CHICAGO – After months of work to extend health care access to more Illinoisans, members of the Illinois Legislative Democratic Caucus are celebrating the extension of Medicaid coverage for new mothers from 60 days to 12 months postpartum. Illinois is the first state in the nation to extend coverage to ensure low-income mothers receive the support they need in the critical months following giving birth.

“We know that a significant share of pregnancy-associated deaths are preventable, and in 2021, mothers should absolutely not be dying from preventable causes after they give birth,” said State Senator Cristina Castro (D-Elgin), who sits on the Senate Committee on Healthcare Access and Availability. “Extending Medicaid benefits to mothers for 12 months postpartum is a critical step toward reducing the maternal morbidity and mortality rate.”

CHICAGO – State Senator Mattie Hunter (D-Chicago) is calling on healthy, eligible African-Americans in Illinois to help replenish the state’s blood supply, which is declining rapidly due to blood drive cancellations at businesses, churches and schools in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

African-American blood donors are particularly needed to help patients battling sickle cell disease amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Sickle cell patients are at high risk of serious complications from coronavirus infection.

“For the black community, this is another layer to our public health emergency. Sickle cell disease tends to affect African-American communities, which are disproportionately suffering from COVID-19 and already lack equal access to preventative health care and treatment,” Hunter said. “Even one donation could save the life of someone in our community.”

Red Cross blood centers have seen donations by African-Americans drop by more than 50% since the novel coronavirus outbreak began in March.

Patients with sickle cell disease depend on transfusions from donors with closely matched blood – beyond the A, B, O and AB types – to reduce the risk of complications.

According to the American Red Cross, each donation center is required to follow the highest standards of safety and infection control, and additional precautions – including social distancing and face coverings for donors and staff – have been implemented to ensure the health of all those in attendance.

“This is a matter of life or death for patients with sickle cell disease and those who rely on transfusions to make it through surgery,” Hunter said. “Now is the time to support our neighbors. I strongly encourage all healthy, able Chicagoans to step up and help fill this void.”

Many blood centers throughout the state have extended their operating hours to meet the critical need for donations.

To make an appointment to donate blood with the Red Cross, residents can visit RedCrossBlood.org or call 800-733-2767.

CHICAGO - State Senator Mattie Hunter (D-Chicago) released the following statement in response to reports that 13 Chicago police officers were caught on tape lounging and sleeping in the congressional campaign office of U.S. Rep. Bobby Rush while violence and destruction ensued in the surrounding neighborhood:

"The disrespectful and careless behavior of these officers shows that there are two different standards of policing in Chicago, depending on which neighborhood you live in. It also further erodes public trust in law enforcement at a time when cultivating a positive relationship between police and the residents they serve couldn’t be more important. Needless to say, our neighborhoods deserve better than this."

SPRINGFIELD – Illinois State Treasurer Michael Frerichs and State Senators Ann Gillespie (D-Arlington Heights) and Mattie Hunter (D-Chicago) announced a new commemorative state coin this week to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment, giving women the right to vote.

Senate Joint Resolution 28, sponsored by Gillespie and Hunter, authorized the State Treasurer to issue a coin to celebrate the landmark moment in history. The measure was approved unanimously by the General Assembly during the 2019 legislative session.

“One hundred years after women secured the right to vote, I am honored and privileged to celebrate the women who dedicated their lives to the suffrage movement, including African-American suffragists who continued to face racial barriers to the ballot box long after the ratification of the 19th amendment,” Hunter said. “Let us always remember and strive to emulate the persistence, courage and grit of these women and all who have fought to give a voice to the voiceless. There is nothing more American.”

“I am proud to celebrate the 100th anniversary of our hard-fought right to vote with this commemorative coin and by continuing our work to ensure that all people are included in our democracy,” Gillespie said. “We can't take anything for granted and we won't go backward.”

The coin was designed by Illinois artists Leslie Bodenstein and Jason Pickleman of JNL Graphic Design. They were selected through a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) process. The coin is being minted by MTM Recognition out of Princeton, Illinois.

Congress passed the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution on June 4, 1919. It was ratified by the Illinois General Assembly on June 10, 1919, followed by 35 other states. The 19th amendment became part of the U.S. Constitution on August 26, 1920.

The coin can be purchased online here.