By Matt Sepic, KWMU
St. Louis – Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich says he's still planning to move forward with a ban on hospital waste incinerators.
The Governor said in September that he would ask legislators to pass a ban during the current veto session if hospitals didn't stop on their own.
But Blagojevich says legislators are unlikely to do anything right away.
"It's an environmental issue," Blagojevich said. "It's about public health, and we're going to do everything we can to see that happen. In all likelihood it's probably going to happen in the next session."
There are 11 hospital incinerators in Illinois, including one at Memorial Hospital in Belleville.
Hospital administrators say the incinerators meet tough environmental regulations, and have said there are no plans to shut them down.
But the Illinois EPA shut down two prior to Blagojevich's original announcement.
An incinerator in suburban Chicago originally brought the governor's opposition.