SJO slides into state baseball title game

The St. Joseph-Ogden baseball team scored six runs across five innings to defeat two-time Class 1A state champions Ottawa Marquette at Illinois Field on Friday.

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Photo: Sentinel/Clark Brooks

CHAMPAIGN - St. Joseph-Ogden's Logan Rosenthal slides across home plate to give the Spartans an early lead over Ottawa Marquette during their IHSA Class 2A state semifinal Friday at Illinois Field. SJO added another run on a Trevor Ames hit to take a 2-0 first-inning advantage and never looked back, scoring four more runs over the next three innings in a 6-1 victory. The top-ranked Spartans advance to Saturday's Class 2A championship game against Harvest Christian Academy-Westminster Christian at 7 p.m. Rosenthal, a senior, finished with one hit, one run scored and one walk.

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Illinois Medicaid bill removes health coverage eligibility for thousands of noncitizens

A Medicaid omnibus bill approved by Illinois lawmakers will remove eligibility for thousands of residents as the state adjusts to new federal requirements. Advocates warn the change could expand the uninsured population while lawmakers cite legal and budget constraints.

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by Peter Hancock
Capitol News Illinois

SPRINGFIELD – A bill that will soon head to Gov. JB Pritzker’s desk will officially remove an estimated 10,000 people from the state’s Medicaid program, leaving them without any form of health coverage.

That group is made up mainly of people who are not U.S. citizens but who are in the country legally, according to the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights. That includes refugees and asylum-seekers, many of whom came to the United States with pre-existing health conditions.

“If they are enrolled, then they still have Medicaid up until Oct. 1,” Edith Avila Hesser, ICIRR’s health justice and policy director, said in an interview. “This adds to the number of uninsured populations that we have here in the state of Illinois, and so obviously we will be working to educate this community about the resources that are available to them through community clinics like FQHCs (Federally Qualified Health Centers) and free and charitable clinics available throughout the state.”

Medicaid is a public health coverage program that is jointly funded by the federal government and the states.

In 2025, Congress amended the federal eligibility rules for Medicaid with passage of H.R. 1, commonly known as President Donald Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill Act.” It removed eligibility for nearly all noncitizens except lawful permanent residents, Cuban and Haitian entrants, and migrants from certain Pacific island nations known as the Compact of Free Association.

Illinois’ Medicaid bill

In order to comply with that change in federal law, Illinois lawmakers included language in this year’s annual Medicaid omnibus bill, Senate Bill 3365, removing most groups of noncitizens from eligibility under state law.

They include, among others, immigrants who are honorably discharged U.S. veterans and their families, refugees and asylees, noncitizens identified as victims of trafficking, Amerasians from Vietnam, and American Indians born in Canada.

“We had to make that change to comply with H.R. 1 so that we didn't put our entire Medicaid program in jeopardy,” Rep. Anna Moeller, D-Elgin, who chairs the House working group that wrote the omnibus bill, said in an interview.

Although Illinois also provides health coverage outside the Medicaid system that is funded entirely with state dollars, the language in this year’s bill specifically states that it “shall not require any category of non-citizens or part thereof to be funded at state-only cost.”

For example, in 2020, Illinois launched a program to provide Medicaid-like coverage known as Health Benefits for Immigrant Seniors for noncitizens age 65 and over, regardless of their immigration status. The following year, it expanded that program with Health Benefits for Immigrant Adults, which covered adults age 42 to 64, regardless of immigration status.

But the latter program was closed in 2025 amid budget and political pressure and enrollment in the seniors program has been limited while many of its enrollees have been shifted to other subsidized coverage programs.

Stalled programs

Illinois also participates in a limited program that provides health benefits to asylum applicants and victims of torture, trafficking and other serious crimes. And to minimize the impact of the upcoming change in eligibility rules, immigrant rights advocates introduced legislation this year to expand that program.

House Bill 4824, sponsored by Rep. Dagmara Avelar, D-Romeoville, and Senate Bill 3462, sponsored by Sen. Graciela Guzmán, D-Chicago, would have extended coverage under that program to several additional categories of noncitizens who are in the country for various humanitarian reasons. But neither of those bills was ever assigned to a substantive committee.

Moeller said budget pressures were the primary reason the bills were not considered this year, and she said that is not likely to change anytime soon. “We're looking at enormous budget pressures next year because of the cuts in H.R. 1 to the Medicaid program, which is going to affect our overall budget,” she said. “Hopefully, at some point we can get many of the provisions that were contained in H.R. 1 overturned federally.”

Capitol News Illinois is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news service that distributes state government coverage to hundreds of news outlets statewide. It is funded primarily by the Illinois Press Foundation and the Robert R. McCormick Foundation.

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Downtown Urbana Farmers Market features fresh fruit, flowers and local finds

Saturday mornings in Urbana continue to deliver one of summer's favorite traditions as Market at the Square welcomes shoppers with seasonal fruit, flowers and more than 100 Illinois vendors. This week's market brings the arrival of peaches and blueberries alongside community booths and Father's Day weekend offerings.

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Photo: Karen Longwell/PEXELS

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by Sentinel News Service
OurSentinel.com

URBANA - There’s something about a Saturday morning at Market at the Square that feels like summer settling into its rhythm.

Tomorrow morning, downtown Urbana will once again fill with shoppers carrying canvas bags, neighbors catching up over coffee, and more than 100 vendors turning the city center into one of central Illinois’ busiest weekly traditions.

The Market at the Square runs from 7 a.m. to noon every Saturday from the first weekend in May through the last weekend in October — rain or shine — and this week’s lineup arrives with one unmistakable headline: peaches and blueberries are officially here.

Several longtime favorites are bringing early-season fruit to market.

Cary’s Garden of Eatin’ plans to offer both blueberries and peaches, while Fermanian Blueberries will set up near the tomato vendors. Mileur Orchards, traveling from Murphysboro, returns to its familiar spot, and Sager Farms of Kell will bring an earlier-than-expected peach crop, setting up in the area normally occupied by Leeyah-Symone Lemonade, which returns next week.

For visitors making a Father’s Day weekend stop, Harden Ranch will be serving up something a little different than produce baskets.

The ranch will offer bison steaks for grilling and Father’s Day meals, along with a buy-one-get-one-free special on knuckle bones for four-legged family members. Customers can also place orders for larger 30- and 80-pound meat bundles.

Flower shoppers may want to arrive early.

Delight Flower Farm says this weekend marks the final appearance of its standout peonies while also kicking off lily season at the market — a seasonal handoff that should bring plenty of color to market bags and kitchen tables.

Meanwhile, The Little Farm Co. is arriving with what it calls a lush, vibrant harvest featuring an extensive selection of greens, roots and microgreens. Offerings include arugula, broccoli, kohlrabi, several signature blends, melons, Thai basil, radishes, leeks, sweet peas, sunflowers and pet grass. Visitors can find the farm in Row 2 and sample varieties before purchasing.

Beyond the food and flowers, community organizations remain part of the market’s weekly draw.

Campus Cooperative Preschool will host an informational booth during the event, sharing information about its play-based preschool programs and current fall enrollment opportunities.

For first-time visitors, Urbana’s Market at the Square operates as a producer-only market. That means vendors sell products they have grown, raised, made or produced locally in Illinois.

Shoppers will find everything from produce, meats and dairy products to prepared foods, plants, flowers, jewelry, pottery, woodwork, candles, clothing, body care products and garden décor.

All vendors accept cash and personal checks. Many also accept credit cards, and some offer electronic payment options including Venmo and Apple Pay.

LINK benefits are accepted, although funds must be converted into market tokens before purchases. For more information on using a LINK card, visit this link - Using your LINK card at the Urbana Market.

Whether the goal is stocking up on summer produce, finding flowers for the table, picking up something for Dad, or simply spending a Saturday morning outdoors, Market at the Square continues to offer one of Urbana’s easiest reasons to slow down and wander.

Additional weekly market information is available at urbanamarket.org.

This week's vendors:

5am Bakery

Aban Irani

ABC123 Craft Studio

Advocates for Aging Care

AO - Spicy and Sweet

Artesanía Nails

AT&T

Atropos Scissors

Bad Bear Pottery

Bakelab LLC

Ben & Molly's Farm

Berries and Flour: Bakery & Harvest Goods, L.L.C.

Bunning's Bakery

Burrito King Food Trucks

Campus Cooperative Preschool

Carly Morrison Clay

Carnation Bookhouse

Cary's Garden of Eatin

Central Illinois Bakehouse

Champaign County Democrats

Champaign County Environmental Stewards

Champaign-Urbana Public Health District

CIMIC

Cindy Sampson/sampson N delilah

Ck Almonds

Claybank Farms

Cloud Mountain Kombucha

Country Cottage Farm

Cuddlebug Cottage

DayDreams

Delight Flower Farm

Designed With Hartman

Discardistry

Disco Cheeks

El Oasis

Elm City Coffee

EvermoreWood

Everyday Feast

Fabrikate

Foufoufactory

Fruitful Vines

Gadgets & Gizmos A-plenty

Gelater llc

Gigi's Soapery

Good Judys Espresso & Bagel Bar

Granny Cakes

Green G Farm

Hanna’s Hobbies

Harden Ranch

Heart Fired Pottery

Illinois Willows

J&S Sales

Jasmine’s Jewelry Co

Jehovah's Witnesses

Joyfully Blooming

Jurassic Grill

Just Sew Sew

Keke's

Koller family gardens

Kountry Fresh / Koss Family Farms

Lancaster Flower Co.

Laurel & Lemon Children's Clothing

League of Women Voters

Light of the World Fragrant Candles LLC

Little Bird Pottery

Living Light Farms

Lucania Arts

Madilyn Jane Ceramics

Maxwell’s Mushroom Farm

Melissa Morgan

Mellie Lia Crafts

Mexican Delicacies La Paloma

MILEUR ORCHARD

Moore Family Farm

Mueller Family Farm LLC

Nan Argentine Sweets

Nano Farms

Niece's Pieces Brownies

NitroCup

Not Too Sweet

nuEra Cannabis

Ochoa Farm

Olde Tyme Kettle Korn

OLLI at Illinois

Phil Strang Artist

Piato Catering & Organic Food Nanny

PopCycle, LLC

Power House COGIC

Prairie Fruits Farm & Creamery

Reimagined Relics

Richard Oosterhoff & Son

SBSTRANDCOLLECTION

Science at the Market, Physics UIUC

Silver Lining Goods

Skye & Earth Jewelry

Sola Gratia Farm

Sparkles by Stephanie

SPROUTS!

Stango Cuisine

Strawberry Void

Strictly Wicks Candle Company

Studio Mayday

Sugared In Champaign LLC

Suline Creations LLC

Sweet N Simple

Tempered Mettle Historical Fencing

The Blooming Idiot

The Button Man

The Cousins Dog Biscuit Co

The Little Farm Co.

The Macaron Palace

The Wright Soapery

Thoughtful Fiber Arts

Three Berry Flowers

Tiger Gardens

Triple S Farms

Ts Random Snacks by Letisha

Twin City Theatre Company

Uniquely Blended Mood Modifiers

University of Illinois Developmental Psychology Labs

Warm Paws Bakery

Winfrey Wood Works

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