In August of last year, House Republicans were fielding calls from doctors, nurses and other healthcare professionals fearful that they would lose their jobs due to continued delays at the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR), the state agency responsible for approving and renewing their licenses.
Something had to be done, Illinois couldn’t afford to lose more healthcare professionals as we face a growing nursing shortage.
IDFPR is responsible for licensing and regulating more than 1.2 million professionals. These professionals represent a wide breadth of occupations including medical practitioners, barbers and hair stylists, pharmacists, engineers, architects, geologists, roofing contractors, accountants and many more.
It’s a big job. So when the antiquated system used by IDFPR caused significant breakdowns in communication and lost applications resulting in long delays, House Republicans took action. House Minority Leader Tony McCombie along with Representatives Bill Hauter and Dave Severin introduced a plan and legislative package (including legislation supported by Rep. Tom Weber) aimed at improving the licensing process and ultimately keeping healthcare providers practicing here in Illinois. The lawmakers’ measures would require IDFPR to accept online payments, lower costs, allow for reciprocity and expedite licenses for critical shortage occupations, especially in healthcare.
While much of the legislation did not move in the spring session, the lawmakers’ efforts were not lost on IDFPR. Process changes have been implemented and more are coming. The agency has recently entered into a contract with a vendor to develop a new online system that will streamline the licensing process, they say. Continued diligence and greater accountability are still needed to implement crucial changes in how IDFPR manages professional licensure.
House Republicans are hopeful that new procedures at IDFPR will streamline the licensure process. They will be keeping an eye on the progress and are ready to interface with the agency on behalf of their constituents.