Illinois Sues Feds Over $600M In Cuts To Public Health Aid For 4 Democratic-Led States

The state's attorney general has filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration, challenging a directive to cut more than $600 million in federal public health funding in Illinois and three other Democratic-led states.

The Trump administration says the cuts are being made because it finds the grants are "inconsistent with agency priorities," according to media reports.

Meanwhile, the lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois on Wednesday, seeks to block the federal government's actions to cut the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention grants.

Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul argues the cuts are unlawful and politically motivated and would amount to more than $100 million in cuts to Illinois. State attorney generals from California, Colorado and Minnesota have also joined the lawsuit.

The funding, which could be terminated as soon as Thursday, has allowed states to track disease outbreaks, maintain and improve their data systems and collect basic public health data the CDC relies upon, according to Roaul's statement. These funding cuts will lead to the lay offs of hundreds of trained public health professionals.

The decision, Raoul said, is politically motivated.

The lawsuit specifically accuses the Trump administration of using the cuts as leverage against Illinois’ sanctuary policies. Raoul’s office argues that the federal government unlawfully threatened to withhold funds in retaliation for the state’s stance on immigration.

“The president is blatantly targeting states that are disfavored for political reasons, and our residents are the ones who will suffer,” Raoul said. “The programs that rely on this funding are in no way related to federal immigration law, and these arbitrary cuts will affect critical public health infrastructure in Illinois."

Raoul’s office claims the reductions violate federal law and would have serious consequences for Illinois residents, including cuts to critical programs addressing addiction, HIV prevention, and other health services.

"I will continue to push back on the administration’s unlawful actions and policies particularly when it affects funding to prevent and treat life-threatening ailments, such as lead poisoning or HIV," Raoul said.

“This politically-motivated directive threatens the health and safety of Illinois residents by jeopardizing vital services,” Raoul added. “The law is clear: these funding cuts are illegal and must be stopped.”

Raoul is seeking a court order to block the cuts, and the case is still pending.

The Chicago Sun-Times is reporting at least $29 million in Illinois grants could be nixed under the Trump-ordered directive —and those funding cuts would affect HIV prevention and city, state and other health centers' family planning programs. A $5.2 million program aimed at HIV prevention at Ann & Robert Lurie Children's Hospital is also on the chopping block as is $7.2 million in grant cuts to the American Medical Association in Illinois, which supports gender-affirming care.

John Peller, president and CEO of AIDS Foundation Chicago, said the cuts are extremely ill-timed, according to ABC 7 Chicago.

"Today, there are about 800 people a year newly diagnosed with HIV in the city of Chicago. And those numbers are going in the wrong direction. It makes tremendous sense to be investing in HIV prevention programs if the concern is about saving money," Peller said.

In January, the Trump administration froze $10 billion in funding from programs that support low-income families, including the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program, the Child Care and Development Block Grant and the Social Service Block Grant to Illinois, California, New York, Minnesota and Colorado — over allegations of fraudulent programming.

• IL Congressman Blasts Trump Childcare Cuts: 'We Are Not Going To Use Kids As Pawns'
• Trump Freezes $10B In Child Care, Social Services To IL And Other Democratic States

In Illinois alone, the freeze threatens access to child care assistance for approximately 100,1000 families and more than 150,000 children. To date, neither the White House nor the Department of Health and Human Services has provided evidence of fraud taking place in Illinois.

“Congress appropriated this funding to support working families and ensure children have safe places to grow and learn,” said Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. “Loopholes and fraud diverted that money to bad actors instead. Today, we are correcting that failure and returning these funds to the working families they were meant to serve."