The Illinois Poison Control Center will have to...

The Illinois Poison Control Center will have to shut down July 1 if the Legislature does not approve SB-2674 (http://bit.ly/1mnuhV4), which would give the center two cents of the state’s 73-cent wireless surcharge for 911 services, said IPC spokeswoman Janine Sheedy in an email to us Tuesday. Despite concerns from public safety answering points about diverting the funding, “as the state’s first responder in poison emergencies, the IPC, staffed by nurses, pharmacists, and physicians, is natural fit with 911. ... By treating 90 percent of its calls from the general public at home without referral to a health care facility, the IPC save Illinois more than $52 million” a year “in unnecessary health care costs,” Sheedy said. The measure passed the Senate Thursday and is being considered in the House.