Continuing her efforts to respond to the Legionnaires outbreak crisis at the Quincy Veterans Home, State representative Linda Chapa LaVia, D-Aurora, voted to fund reconstruction of the facility, as well as to require the Illinois Department of Veterans’ Affairs to begin submitting a biannual report on the health and welfare of residents at state veterans’ homes.
“The General Assembly had to take action because our heroic veterans and their spouses deserve to be treated better by our state,” Chapa LaVia said.
“While we cannot change the mishandling that occurred in Quincy starting in 2015, we can require the Department of Veterans’ Affairs to be more transparent and accountable with how they care for our veteran home residents.”
Chapa LaVia backed House Bill 5784, which requires a biannual report to be submitted to the General Assembly about the health and welfare of residents at state veterans’ homes. The report will include information on any cases involving diseases in the homes.
Additionally, Chapa LaVia voted to authorize $53 million to be spent on reconstruction efforts at the Quincy Veterans Home. The facility is the location of a deadly Legionnaires disease outbreak that began in 2015 and has taken the lives of 13 residents. Additionally, dozens of employees and residents have come down with illness as a result of the outbreak over the past three years.
“The sooner we can create a new environment for residents in Quincy, the better,” Chapa LaVia said. “This year’s funding is the beginning of a commitment to reconstruct and modernize the home so that residents now and in the future will receive the care they deserve.”
— Office of State Representative Linda Chapa LaVia