The Illinois Hospital Association wants the state to pass a temporary budget if a deal on a full year's spending can't be reached soon. If lawmakers and the governor don't agree on a budget by the June 30 deadline, state agencies might have to shut down. A representative of the organization A-J Wilhelmisays hospitals receive payments for Medicaid and other services. "Hospitals throughout the state are greatly concerned with a shutdown of state government and would strongly encourage consideration of a one-month budget to ensure that the state can make these important payments, not only to hospitals, but others that rely on state funding."
Wilhelmi says without these payments, hospitals might have no choice but to stop paying their own bills and making employee payroll. The governor's office says a temporary budget would be "unacceptable."