Cardiss Hortense Collins (née Robertson; September 24, 1931 – February 3, 2013) was an American politician from Illinois who served in the United States House of Representatives from 1973 to 1997.

In 1975, she was instrumental in prompting the Social Security Administration to revise Medicare regulations to cover the cost of post-mastectomy breast prosthesis, which before then had been considered cosmetic.

In the 1980s, Collins warded off two primary challenges from Alderman Danny K. Davis,[5] who would finally be elected to replace her after she chose not to seek reelection in 1996.

Her legislative interests were focused on establishing universal health insurance, providing for gender equity in college sports, and reforming federal child care facilities.

[11] In 2004, she was selected by Nielsen Media Research to head a task force examining the representation of African Americans in TV rating samples.