Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan's office is investigating Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner's administration's response to a Legionnaires' disease outbreak at a veterans home that left several veterans dead, the Chicago Tribune reports.
"There needs to be an investigation to determine if laws were violated and whether residents of the home, their families, veterans' home staff and the public were informed in a timely and appropriate manner," a spokesperson for Ms. Madigan's office said.
The Illinois Veterans Home in Quincy had three separate outbreaks of Legionnaires' disease between 2015 and 2017, causing 64 infections and 13 deaths.
Legionnaires' disease is a virulent form of pneumonia contracted through drinking water carrying Legionella bacteria. Those with weakened immune systems, including elderly patients, face a greater risk of infection.
The CDC issued a report on the water system at the Quincy VA facility in January that said Legionella may never be completely eliminated from the facility's water system and more Legionnaires' cases could be inevitable.
A spokesperson for Gov. Rauner said the administration has regularly communicated with residents, staff, family members and the public about the issue over the last three years.
"The administration is focused on maintaining quality care for our veterans," the spokesperson said. "The state has been transparent in this process, providing hundreds of thousands of pages of documents to the General Assembly and to the auditor general at the General Assembly's request and to the news media."