(a) Findings. The General Assembly finds that there are communities in Illinois that experience significant health care disparities, as recently emphasized by the COVID-19 pandemic, aggravated by social determinants of health and a lack of sufficient access to high quality health care resources, particularly community-based services, preventive care, obstetric care, chronic disease management, and specialty care. Safety-net hospitals, as defined under the Illinois Public Aid Code, serve as the anchors of the health care system for many of these communities. Safety-net hospitals not only care for their patients, they also are rooted in their communities by providing jobs and partnering with local organizations to help address the social determinants of health, such as food, housing, and transportation needs.
     However, safety-net hospitals serve a significant number of Medicare, Medicaid, and uninsured patients, and therefore, are heavily dependent on underfunded government payers, and are heavily burdened by uncompensated care. At the same time, the overall cost of providing care has increased substantially in recent years, driven by increasing costs for staffing, prescription drugs, technology, and infrastructure.
     For all of these reasons, the General Assembly finds that the long-term sustainability of safety-net hospitals is threatened. While the General Assembly is providing funding to the Department to be paid to support the expenses of specific safety-net hospitals in State Fiscal Year 2023, such annual, ad hoc funding is not a reliable and stable source of funding that will enable safety-net hospitals to develop strategies to achieve long term sustainability. Such annual, ad hoc funding also does not provide the State with transparency and accountability to ensure that such funding is being used effectively and efficiently to maximize the benefit to members of the community.
     Therefore, it is the intent of the General Assembly that the Department of Public Health and the Department of Healthcare and Family Services jointly provide options and recommendations to the General Assembly by February 1, 2023, for the establishment of a permanent Safety-Net Hospital Health Equity and Access Leadership (HEAL) Grant Program, in accordance with this Section. It is the intention of the General Assembly that during State fiscal years 2024 through 2029, the Safety-Net Hospital Health Equity and Access Leadership (HEAL) Grant Program shall be supported by an annual funding pool of up to $100,000,000, subject to appropriation.
     (b) By February 1, 2023, the Department of Public Health and the Department of Healthcare and Family Services shall provide a joint report to the General Assembly on options and recommendations for the establishment of a permanent Safety-Net Hospital Health Equity and Access Leadership (HEAL) Grant Program to be administered by the State. For this report, “safety-net hospital” means a hospital identified by the Department of Healthcare and Family Services under § 5-5e.1 of the Illinois Public Aid Code. The Departments of Public Health and Healthcare and Family Services may consult with the statewide association representing a majority of hospitals and safety-net hospitals on the report. The report may include, but need not be limited to:
         (1) Criteria for a safety-net hospital to be