An Illinois Democrat who claims the unvaccinated are "clogging up the health care system" has proposed a bill that would force them to pay all of their medical expenses out of pocket if they become hospitalized with the coronavirus

The measure, set forth by State Rep. Jonathan Carroll, comes alongside news that the average coronavirus hospitalization cost is now $24,033, according to data from the government-run Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services

"The vaccine is proven to be the one thing that is stopping the severity of COVID-19, and we are seeing more variants popping up," Carroll told WCIA. "The experts are telling us, ‘This is now becoming a disease of the unvaccinated.’ The people that are choosing to get vaccinated are not the ones that are clogging up the health care system, it’s the ones that aren’t." 

A sign about COVID-19 testing is displayed outside of a testing site in Wheeling, Ill., on Friday. 

A sign about COVID-19 testing is displayed outside of a testing site in Wheeling, Ill., on Friday.  (AP/Nam Y. Huh)

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Carroll’s proposed bill states that "a person who is eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccine and chooses not to be vaccinated shall pay for health care expenses out-of-pocket if the person becomes hospitalized because of COVID-19 symptoms." 

A sign about COVID-19 vaccine is displayed inside of a CVS store as people wait to check in for the vaccine in Buffalo Grove, Ill., on Friday. 

A sign about COVID-19 vaccine is displayed inside of a CVS store as people wait to check in for the vaccine in Buffalo Grove, Ill., on Friday.  (AP/Nam Y. Huh)

If passed into law, the changes wouldn’t affect Illinois residents until January 2023. 

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However, the bill would likely run into legal challenges and Carroll told the Chicago Sun-Times that it is a "starting point — we’ll see where the conversations go." 

Illinois State Sen. Dan McConchie, a Republican, also told the newspaper he opposes "taking health care away from Illinoisans."