(WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- Governor JB Pritzker signed two bills that will make medical and legal care for victims of sexual assault broader and more accessible.
This new legislation allows survivors to access medical care under the act for 180 days, doubling the time window and extending access to those unable to receive care in the first few months after an incident.
It also guarantees that a victim seeking medical treatment will have access to a trained medical forensic examiner as well as other medical staff specifically trained to provide care for victims of sexual assault given the trauma they have faced.
Victims can also decline to bill their health insurance provider for the cost of emergency care if they themselves are not the primary policy holder, which allows those seeking treatment after abuse from partners or family members who share in their insurance policy to maintain confidentiality and avoid additional danger.
“The trauma associated with sexual assault is already profound – the last thing survivors need is the added stress of a lack of privacy and confidentiality,” said State Senator Julie Morrison in a statement.
“SB3023 (the bill) will allow people to feel more secure in seeking a rape exam.”
One of the two bills also amends the Illinois Criminal Code to specify that someone is unable to give consent when intoxicated, even when the accused assaulter didn’t provide the substance that intoxicated them.
Kaylyn Ahn, 18, was sexually assaulted while intoxicated and was told her case would likely not be prosecuted because of that. She brought the issue to the attention of State Rep. Mark Walker, who then decided to sponsor the bill.
"I am telling my story because my pain is not an individual loss but a systemic failure of a legal system that has time and again failed to protect us,” Ahn said in a statement.
“No matter what you were wearing, what you were drinking, or whether you were in a relationship with them, rape is never your fault. In signing this bill, we are listening to the power of survivors."
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