Public Act 102-1124
 
SB1836 EnrolledLRB102 15315 BMS 20671 b


  
    AN ACT concerning regulation.
  
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
 
represented in the General Assembly:
  





 
    Section 5. The Nurse Agency Licensing Act is amended  by 
changing Sections 3, 13, 14, and 14.3 as follows:
 


    (225 ILCS 510/3)  (from Ch. 111, par. 953)



    Sec. 3. Definitions. As used in this Act:

    "Certified nurse aide" means an individual certified as 
defined in
Section 3-206 of the Nursing Home Care Act, Section 
3-206 of the ID/DD Community Care Act, or Section 3-206 of the 
MC/DD Act, as now or hereafter amended. 

    "Covenant not to compete" means an agreement between a 
nurse agency and  an employee that restricts the employee from 
performing:
        (1)  any work for another employer for a specified 
    period of time;
        (2)  any work in a specified geographic area; or
        (3)  any work for another employer that is similar to 
    the work the employee performs for the employer that is a 
    party to the agreement. 
    "Department" means the Department of Labor.

    "Director" means the Director of Labor.

    "Employee" means a nurse or a certified nurse aide. 
    "Health care facility" is defined as in Section 3 of the 
Illinois
Health Facilities Planning Act, as now or hereafter 
amended. "Health care facility" also includes any facility 
licensed, certified, or approved by any State agency and 
subject to regulation under the Assisted Living and Shared 
Housing Act or the Illinois Public Aid Code.

    "Licensee" means any nurse nursing agency which is 
properly licensed under
this Act.
    "Long-term basis" means the placement of a nurse or a 
certified nurse aide at a health care facility for an initial 
employment, assignment, or referral term of more than 24 
continuous months by a nurse agency that incurs the following 
expenses to place the nurse or certified nurse aide at the 
health care facility: (i) educational material expenses, if 
required; (ii) expenses for credentialing, licensure, or 
certification; or (iii) expenses for airline travel, lodging, 
meals, and ground transportation provided to a nurse or 
certified nurse aide. "Long-term basis" does not include the 
placement of a nurse or a certified nurse aide at a health care 
facility for an initial employment, assignment, or referral 
term of an undefined duration. 

    "Nurse" means a registered nurse, a licensed practical 
nurse, an advanced practice registered nurse, or any 
individual licensed under the Nurse Practice Act.

    "Nurse agency" means any individual, firm, corporation,

partnership, or other legal entity that employs, assigns, or 
refers nurses
or certified nurse aides to a health care 
facility for a
fee.  The term "nurse agency" includes nurses 
registries.  The term "nurse
agency" does not include services 
provided by home
health agencies licensed and operated under 
the Home Health, Home Services, and Home Nursing Agency

Licensing Act or a licensed or certified
individual who 
provides his or her own services as a regular employee of a

health care facility, nor does it apply to a health care 
facility's
organizing nonsalaried employees to provide 
services only in that
facility.

    "Temporary basis" means an initial employment, assignment, 
or referral term of an undefined duration or a duration of 24 
continuous months or less exclusive of any extension.
(Source: P.A. 102-946, eff. 7-1-22.)

 


    (225 ILCS 510/13)  (from Ch. 111, par. 963)




    Sec. 13. Application for employment. 

    (a) Every nurse agency shall cause
each applicant for 
employment, assignment, or referral, as a nurse to
complete an 
application form including the following information:

        (1) name and address of the applicant;

        (2) whether or not such applicant is a nurse currently 
    licensed by the
Department of Financial and Professional 
    Regulation;

        (3) if so licensed, the number and date of such 
    license; and

        (4) references and dates and places of previous 
    employment.

    Prior to employing, assigning, or referring a nurse, the 
agency shall
contact the Department of Financial and 
Professional Regulation to determine whether the
nurse's 
license is valid and in good standing. Written verification 
shall
be sent by the Department of Financial and Professional 
Regulation within 20 working
days.  At least biennially 
thereafter, the nurse agency shall contact the
Department of 
Financial and Professional Regulation to verify this 
information in
writing.  The nurse agency shall review the 
disciplinary report published
by the Department of Financial 
and Professional Regulation on a monthly basis to
determine 
whether the nurse's license is valid and in good standing.

    (b) Every nurse agency shall cause each applicant for 
employment,
assignment, or referral, as a certified nurse aide 
to complete an
application form including the following 
information:

        (1) name and address of the applicant;

        (2) whether or not the nurse aide is registered as 
    having completed a
certified course as approved by the 
    Department of Public Health; and 

        (3) references and dates and places of previous 
    employment.

    Prior to employing, assigning, or referring a certified 
nurse aide, the agency shall review the information provided 
on the Health Care Worker Registry to verify that the 
certification is valid. Prior to employing, assigning, or 
referring a certified nurse aide to a position at a health care 
employer or long-term facility as defined in the Health Care 
Worker Background Check Act, the nurse agency shall review the 
information provided on the Health Care Worker Registry to 
verify that the certified nurse aide is not ineligible for the 
position pursuant to Section 25 of the Health Care Worker 
Background Check Act.

    (c) Every nurse agency shall check at least 2 recent 
references and the
dates of employment provided by the 
applicant, unless the applicant has not
had 2 previous 
employers.

    (d)   Knowingly employing, assigning, or referring to a 
health care facility a nurse or certified nurse aide with an 
illegally or fraudulently obtained or issued diploma, 
registration, license, certificate, or background study 
constitutes negligent hiring by a nurse agency and is a 
violation of this Act. 
    (e) Nurses or certified nurses aides employed, assigned, 
or referred to
a health care facility by a nurse agency shall 
be deemed to be employees of
the nurse agency while working for 
the nurse agency or on nurse agency
employment, assignment, or 
referral and may only be terminated by the nurse agency for 
cause.

(Source: P.A. 102-946, eff. 7-1-22; revised 8-22-22.)

 



    (225 ILCS 510/14)  (from Ch. 111, par. 964)



    Sec. 14. Minimum Standards. 
    (a) The Department, by rule, shall
establish minimum 
standards for the operation of nurse agencies. Those
standards 
shall include, but are not limited to: 
        (1) the maintenance of written
policies and 
    procedures;
        (2)   the maintenance and submission to the Department 
    of copies of all contracts between the nurse agency and 
    health care facility to which it assigns or refers nurses 
    or certified nurse aides and copies of all invoices to 
    health care facilities personnel. Executed contracts must 
    be sent to the Department within 5 business days of their 
    effective date; and 
        (3) the development of personnel policies for nurses 
    or certified nurse aides employed, assigned, or referred 
    to health care facilities, including a personal interview, 
    a reference check, an annual
evaluation of each employee 
    (which may be based in part upon information provided by

    health care facilities utilizing nurse agency personnel), 
    and periodic
health examinations. Executed contracts must 
    be sent to the Department within 5 business days of their 
    effective date and are not subject to disclosure under the 
    Freedom of Information Act. 
        No less than 100% of the nurse or certified nurse aide 
    hourly rate shall be paid to the nurse or certified nurse 
    aide employee. 

    (b) Each nurse agency shall have a nurse serving as a 
manager or
supervisor of all nurses and certified nurses 
aides.

    (c) Each nurse agency shall
ensure that its employees meet 
the minimum
licensing, training, continuing education, and 
orientation standards for
which those employees
are licensed 
or certified. 

    (d) A nurse agency shall not employ, assign, or refer for 
use in an Illinois
health care facility a nurse or certified 
nurse aide unless certified or
licensed under applicable 
provisions of State and federal law or regulations.
Each 
certified nurse aide shall comply with all pertinent

regulations of the Illinois Department of Public Health 
relating to the
health and other qualifications of personnel 
employed in health care facilities.

    (e) The Department may adopt rules to monitor the usage of 
nurse agency services to
determine their impact. 

    (f) Nurse agencies are prohibited from recruiting 
potential employees on the premises of a health care facility 
or requiring, as a condition of
employment, assignment, or 
referral, that their employees
recruit new employees for the 
nurse agency from
among the permanent employees of the health 
care facility to which the
nurse agency employees have been 
employed,
assigned, or referred,
and the health care facility 
to which such employees are employed, assigned,
or referred is 
prohibited from requiring, as a condition of employment,
that 
their employees recruit new employees from these nurse agency

employees.  Violation of this provision is a business offense. 

    (g)    Nurse agencies are prohibited from entering into 
covenants not to compete with nurses and certified nurse aides 
if the nurse is   employed, assigned, or referred by a nurse 
agency to a health care facility on a temporary basis or the 
certified nurse aide is employed, assigned, or referred by a 
nurse agency to a health care facility on a temporary basis. A 
covenant not to compete entered into on or after July 1, 2022 
(the effective date of Public Act 102-946) this amendatory Act 
of the 102nd General Assembly between a nurse agency and a 
nurse or a certified nurse aide is illegal and void if (i) the 
nurse is  employed, assigned, or referred by a nurse agency to a 
health care facility on a temporary basis or (ii) the 
certified nurse aide is employed, assigned, or referred by a 
nurse agency to a health care facility on a temporary basis  is 
illegal and void. In The nursing agency shall not, in any 
contract on a temporary basis with any nurse, certified nurse 
aide, employee or health care facility, a nurse agency is 
prohibited from requiring require the payment of liquidated 
damages, conversion fees, employment fees, buy-out fees, 
placement fees, or other compensation if the nurse or 
certified nurse aide employee is hired as a permanent employee 
of a health care facility.
    (g-5) Beginning on the effective date of this amendatory 
Act of the 102nd General Assembly and ending on December 31, 
2027, a nurse agency may enter into a covenant not to compete 
with a nurse or a certified nurse aide if (i) the nurse is 
employed, assigned, or referred by a nurse agency to a health 
care facility on a long-term basis  or (ii) the certified nurse 
aide is employed, assigned, or referred by a nurse agency to a 
health care facility on a long-term basis.  However, if a 
covenant not to compete that was entered into on or before 
December 31, 2027 expires on or after January 1, 2028, the 
covenant not to compete shall remain in effect until its 
expiration date.  To be enforceable, the term of a covenant not 
to compete entered into under this subsection  must be 
concurrent with the term of the initial employment, 
assignment, or referral of the nurse or certified nurse aide 
to a health care facility.  A contract on a long-term basis 
between any nurse, certified nurse aide, or health care 
facility and a nurse agency may provide for the payment of 
actual damages, conversion fees, employment fees, buy-out 
fees, placement fees, or other reasonable expenses resulting 
from a violation of the contract that occurred during the 
initial employment, assignment, or referral term. 
    (h)       A nurse agency shall submit a report quarterly to the 
Department for each health care entity with whom the agency 
contracts that includes all of the following by provider type 
and county in which the work was performed:
        (1)   A list of the average amount charged to the health 
    care facility for each individual employee category.
        (2)   A list of the average amount paid by the agency to 
    employees in each individual employee category.
        (3)   A list of the average amount of labor-related 
    costs paid by the agency for each employee category, 
    including payroll taxes, workers' compensation insurance, 
    professional liability coverage, credentialing and 
    testing, and other employee related costs. 
    The Department shall publish by county in which the work 
was performed the average amount charged to the health care 
facilities by nurse agencies for each individual worker 
category and the average amount paid by the agency to each 
individual worker category. 
    (i)    The Department shall publish on its website the 
reports yearly by county.
    (j)      The Department of Labor shall compel production of  the 
maintained records, as required under this Section, by the 
nurse agencies. 
(Source: P.A. 102-946, eff. 7-1-22.)

 
    (225 ILCS 510/14.3)
    Sec. 14.3. Contracts between nurse agencies and health 
care facilities.
    (a)   A contract entered into on or after the effective date 
of this amendatory Act of the 102nd General Assembly between 
the nurse agency and health care facility must contain the 
following provisions:
        (1)    A full disclosure of charges and compensation.
The 
    disclosure shall include a schedule of all hourly bill 
    rates per category of employee, a full description of 
    administrative charges, and a schedule of rates of all 
    compensation per category of employee, including, but not 
    limited to, hourly regular pay rate, shift differential, 
    weekend  differential, hazard  pay, charge  nurse  add-on, 
    overtime, holiday pay, and travel or mileage pay.
        (2)   A commitment that nurses or certified nurse aides 
    employed, assigned, or referred to a health care facility 
    by the nurse agency perform any and all duties called for 
    within the full scope of practice for which the nurse or 
    certified nurse aide is licensed or certified.
        (3)   No less than 100% of the nurse or certified nurse 
    aide hourly rate shall be paid to the nurse or certified 
    nurse aide employee.
    (b)   A party's failure to comply with the requirements of 
subsection (a) shall be a defense to the enforcement of a 
contract between a nurse agency and a health care facility. 
Any health care facility or nurse agency aggrieved by a 
violation of subsection (a) shall have a right of action in a 
State court against the offending party.  A prevailing party 
may recover for each violation:
        (1)     liquidated damages of $1,500 or actual damages, 
    whichever is greater;
        (2)     reasonable attorney's fees and costs, including 
    expert witness fees and other litigation expenses; and
        (3)     other relief, including an injunction, as the 
    court may deem appropriate.

    (c) This Section does not  apply to contracts  on a 
long-term basis between a nurse agency and a health care 
facility providing for the employment, assignment, or referral 
of  nurses or certified nurse aides to the health care 
facility.
(Source: P.A. 102-946, eff. 7-1-22.)
 

    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon 
becoming law.