GCI Annual Report 2014 | Page 3

LETTER FROM GOVERNOR PAT QUINN: INTRODUCING A CULTURE OF COVERAGE

GOVERNOR PAT QUINN
INTRODUCES GET COVERED
ILLINOIS ON OCTOBER 1, 2013

“In Illinois
we believe
access to
health
care is a
fundamental
right.”
- GOVERNOR PAT QUINN

Since the day President Obama
signed the Affordable Care Act
(ACA) into law in 2010, Illinois
has been working hard to deliver
on the game-changing promise
of this reform of our health care
system. When we look back on
2014, we feel a tremendous sense
of accomplishment in the strong
start we made here in Illinois during
the first year of enrollment. Get
Covered Illinois (GCI) succeeded in

enrolling more than 600,000 people
in health coverage through the Illinois Health
Insurance Marketplace and Medicaid. We can all be
proud of the way Illinois embraced the expansion of
Medicaid and the care that it promises for our most
vulnerable citizens, those who had been left out of
the health care system.
Throughout the Land of Lincoln, we have established
a firm foundation for our twin goals of creating a
culture of coverage and improving the health and
well-being of the people of Illinois.
The ACA is making a real difference in the lives
of Illinois residents. I’ve seen this difference in the
tears of a mother who knew that she no longer had
to fear being denied health coverage because of
a pre-existing condition. And she no longer faced
unaffordable health insurance premiums – in fact

more than three quarters of the customers in the
Marketplace qualified for financial assistance. Now,
more than 600,000 of our friends and neighbors
know they have access to medications and the
preventive care that allows them to stay healthy and
treat health problems as soon as they arise. This
represents real progress in the health of our state. 
While Illinois has expanded access to coverage, we
are also reforming and transforming our health care
system into one that provides coordinated care and
builds healthier communities.
As we look forward to the next enrollment period,
we know there is a lot of work to be done. There are
still too many people in Illinois who have not taken
advantage of the historic opportunity created by
the ACA. However, GCI has built a strong team and
foundation, and we are going to double our efforts
as we focus on Year Two of the ACA. In Illinois, we
believe access to health care is a fundamental right.
We want everyone to be covered in Illinois, and no
one left out.

Pat Quinn
Governor of Illinois

© GetCoveredIllinois.gov | YEAR ONE ANNUAL REPORT | p. 2