Springfield, IL... State Representative David Leitch (R-Peoria) passed a bill unanimously through the Illinois House to allow for funds currently appropriated for a forensic psychiatry fellowship training program to also be used at the University of Illinois College Of Medicine at Peoria (UICOMP).
Under current law, funds may be appropriated to only the University of Illinois at Chicago and Southern Illinois University for forensic psychiatry fellowship training programs. This bill, if enacted into law, will allow for program expansion at UICOMP and attract more forensic psychiatry fellows to Peoria.
"When UICOMP and Methodist Medical Center initiate a forensic psychiatry fellowship program at Peoria, we should qualify for state funding for this program as well," said Leitch. "I hope that we can bring more psychiatry students to Peoria. When they stay in Peoria, they will help relieve our critical need for mental health services, an important benefit for our community."
Currently, UICOMP has fellowships in conjunction with Methodist Medical Center and OSF Saint Francis Medical Center and include Geriatrics, Women's Health, Breast Imaging, Interventional Radiology, and Neuroradiology. Leitch stated that his bill is supported by the University of Illinois.