A new Illinois law, effective January 1, 2022, ensures that children whose parents are divorced or never married have public or private health insurance when child support is determined by requiring the parents to obtain health insurance or maintain existing health insurance coverage for the child. #healthinsuranceforchildren,
The Illinois Marriage and Dissolution Act or "IDMA" anticipates that in 2022, it will allows for a party to seek from the other party the retainer fee for an attorney to assist in the litigation process under the interim attorney fees provision. Now a party that needs financial assistance from the other party to effectuate the litigation process can seek out a retainer fee under the interim attorney fees portion of the IDMA. The award of the retainer fee is to be paid to the opposing party’s attorney directly. #divorceretainerfee,
Effective January 1, 2022 the state's definition of a hate crime is being expanded to include acts of violence, theft or a host of other offenses against another person because of their immigration or citizenship status. Separately, a person who calls the police on someone because of their race, ethnicity, sexual orientation or other protected characteristic when there in so emergency will now face potential civil liability in addition to possible criminal charges under the state's hate crime law. #hatecrime,
Effective January 1, 2022, pharmacists will be able to dispense hormonal birth control, including pills, patches and vaginal rings for up to 12 months without a doctor's prescription. Customers will be required to fill out health screening forms, and pharmacists will have to undergo training and provide customers with counseling and education about contraception. #birthcontrolfrompharmacists,
A new Illinois law, effective January 1, 2021 mandates restaurants offering kids meals will be required to serve low-fat or nonfat milk or other unsweetened beverages, such as water or 100% juice, as the default option. Customers still will be able to request pop or other beverages. #kidsdrinks,
A new law, effective January 1, 2022 mandates that public universities throughout Illinois must adopt a policy to make consideration of standardized test scores for undergraduate admissions optional instead of mandatory. Under this policy, public schools like the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale and others do not have to require applicants who live in the state to submit ACT or SAT scores. The policy would also allow applicants to decide whether they want to submit them as part of the admissions process.
As part of the basic training for new drivers in Illinois, state law will now codify a requirement for driver's education courses to cover how motorist should interact with police officers who pull them over. The Illinois secretary of state's office has already incorporated that topic in its Rules of the Road driver's instruction manual. #
