Q1 2025 | State of Chicago Health Care Snapshot | Updated 4.2025
- HC3
- Apr 1
- 3 min read
Updated: Apr 24
As we closed out the first quarter of 2025, HC3 compiled key developments shaping the health care landscape across federal, state, and local levels. The themes reveal a moment of intense policy shifts, deepened inequities, and regional innovation emerging in response to national turbulence.
Top Stories
Medicaid Disenrollment After Pandemic Protections Expire
The rollback of pandemic-era continuous Medicaid coverage led to over 25 million people losing their insurance. States now face rising uncompensated care costs, and hospitals are bracing for worsened outcomes among newly uninsured populations.
Record-Breaking ACA Marketplace Enrollment
A historic 24.3 million Americans signed up for Affordable Care Act coverage—double the enrollment seen in 2020. This surge, boosted by extended premium subsidies, significantly improved access to care. Yet with these subsidies set to expire by year’s end, the long-term stability of this progress remains uncertain.
Medicare Launches Drug Price Negotiations
Medicare is using its power to negotiate prescription drug prices for the first time. Discounts of 38–79% for ten high-cost drugs are slated to take effect in 2026. Though the move could save nearly $100 billion over the next decade, lawsuits from the pharmaceutical industry are still pending.
Illinois' Immigrant Health Coverage Faces Cuts
A well-intentioned program offering state-funded health insurance to undocumented adults in Illinois ran $200 million over budget. In response, Governor Pritzker’s Q1 budget proposes ending coverage for adults under 65 and capping the program at $550 million, triggering heated debate over fiscal prudence vs. health equity.
Chicago’s Mental Health System Rebuild Faces Funding Hurdles
Mayor Johnson’s administration reopened the Roseland Health Hub and expanded non-police crisis response teams. However, broader clinic reopenings are on hold due to tightened city budgets, underscoring the ongoing challenges of sustainable investment in public health.
More things we saw: Federal, State, and City of Chicago Updates.
Federal
Budget Cuts + Layoffs: Major staffing and contract reductions hit HHS, CDC, FDA, and NIH.
COVID-Era Grant Rescissions: $12B in public health funding pulled; states brace for impact.
Medicare Reforms: CMS canceled Primary Care First pilots while keeping caps on insulin and drugs.
DEI Funding Defended: Court blocks attempts to defund federal DEI programs.
Digital Health Extension: Telehealth flexibilities extended through Sept. 2025.
Illinois State
Immigrant Coverage Pullbacks: ~33,000 noncitizens at risk of losing care.
Maternal Health Innovation: $17M awarded to pilot integrated care in Aurora and Rockford.
Nursing Home Reforms: New staffing ratios and whistleblower protections are now in effect.
Licensing Modernization: Behavioral health licensing moves online to ease bottlenecks.
Insurance Program Overhaul: New managed care contracts for dual-eligibles; Walgreens closes 47 clinics.
City of Chicago
Roseland Reinvestment: Free mental and sexual health services return to the Far South Side.
Violence Prevention in Jeopardy: Programs like CRED face sunset without renewed funding.
Welcoming City Under Pressure: Despite reaffirming its sanctuary status, Chicago remains without a sustainable federal or state solution for supporting migrant populations. City services are stretched thin, and the absence of coordinated long-term policy continues to leave both new arrivals and local systems in a precarious position.
New Wellness Hubs: Integrated care centers open in West Garfield Park and Humboldt Park.
Pharmacy Access Shrinks: South and West Side closures raise alarms over drug access.
Cross-Cutting Trends in all markets
Federal Instability vs. Local Innovation: National volatility is prompting hyper-local solutions.
Equity Gaps Widening: Cuts to immigrant care and pharmacy access threaten recent gains.
Advocacy as a Safeguard: Courts and communities are pushing back to protect health progress.
Public Health Readiness Declines: Agency staff cuts jeopardize crisis preparedness.
Workforce Fixes in Motion: Illinois ramps up reforms to relieve health care staffing shortages.
This post was curated using insights from HC3’s members-only weekly updates. Stay informed, subscribe to the HC3 Weekly, and get fresh updates delivered to your inbox every Friday morning.
Sources:
Associated Press, Jan. 8, 2025
CMS Newsroom, Jan. 17, 2025
Reuters, Jan. 17, 2025
CMS Newsroom, Jan. 17, 2025
NPR, Jan. 29, 2025
Politico, Mar. 1, 2025
Health Management Associates, Mar. 6, 2025 https://www.healthmanagement.com/blog/2025-state-of-the-state-addresses-part-2-evolving-healthcare-priorities-across-the-nation/
WTTW News, Feb. 28, 2025
Chicago Sun-Times, Mar. 23, 2025
CBS Chicago, Mar. 6, 2025
FOX 32 Chicago, Apr. 2025
Comentarios