Politics
With Health System Bracing for Cuts, Candidates for Cook County Board President Vow to Preserve Care
Video: Joining “Chicago Tonight” for a candidate forum on March 3, 2026, are Ald. Brendan Reilly (42nd Ward) and Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle. (Produced by Shelby Hawkins)
With the Cook County hospitals and health system facing a bleak future after the Trump administration slashed health care for low- and moderate-income Americans, the Democratic candidates for Cook County Board president vowed to make sure the poorest residents don’t go without care.
Downtown Ald. Brendan Reilly said Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle should have done more to prepare for the all-but-certain cuts imposed by the Trump administration during a WTTW News forum hosted on “Chicago Tonight” with just two weeks to go until Election Day.
The cuts will hit the county’s bottom line next year, threatening the ability of more than 400,000 Cook County residents to get necessary health care.
Preckwinkle said she will rely on partnerships with the University of Illinois, Rush University and the University of Chicago.
“We’ll use those partnerships to enhance our own patient care delivery,” Preckwinkle said, noting that the county’s 2026 budget sets aside $320 million from its reserves as well as another $65 million earmarked for Medicaid to offset cuts imposed by the federal government. “We have a well-functioning system. And we put aside reserves to meet the challenges that are ahead of us.”
Reilly said Preckwinkle should have done more to prepare to withstand Trump’s onslaught. The cuts could open a $400 million hole in the systems’ budgets during the next two years, said Reilly, 54, who has represented the city’s 42nd Ward on the Chicago City Council since 2007.
“While I’ll give my opponent some credit for the $65 million set aside for Medicaid stabilization, I would argue that that number needs to be much larger,” Reilly said. “My concern is that they haven’t done enough to batten down the hatches knowing that this assault on Medicaid is coming our way.”
The county may need to restructure its debt, dip further into its reserves or ask state lawmakers for help, Reilly said.
“We certainly can’t allow Trump’s assault on blue states, counties and cities to tear apart that important safety method so many people depend upon,” Reilly said.
Preckwinkle, who is set to celebrate her 79th birthday on Election Day, also clashed with Reilly over protections for undocumented immigrants and delays in residents’ property tax bills caused by an overhaul of the county’s property tax system plagued with problems, as first reported by the Chicago Tribune and Injustice Watch.
No Republican candidate is running for the GOP nomination. The winner of the March 17 Democratic primary will face Michael Murphy, who is running unopposed for the Libertarian Party nomination.
Contact Heather Cherone: @HeatherCherone | (773) 569-1863 | [email protected]
