HB3487 104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB104 09936 BAB 20006 b

104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2025 and 2026
HB3487

Introduced 2/18/2025, by Rep. Lindsey LaPointe

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

New Act

Creates the Behavioral Health Workforce Data Collection Act. Requires The Department of Financial and Professional Regulation to collect data, as specified, from behavioral health professionals at the time of initial application for licensure and renewal of an active license. Requires the Department to ensure the data collection process is secure and adheres to State and federal privacy laws, including de-identification of personal data. Provides that the Department shall make the collected data publicly available in an aggregated, de-identified format. Requires the data to be published in a format that allows policy groups, advocates, and other stakeholders to monitor the diversity, linguistic capacity, and availability of the behavioral health workforce; identify regions and specialties with severe shortages; and forecast future workforce needs. Requires the Department to publish the aggregated data annually by January 31 on its website and through other accessible formats. Grants the Department rulemaking authority to implement the Act. Requires the Department to comply with applicable data privacy and confidentiality laws. Provides that, for a period of 2 years following the effective date of the Act, the Department shall submit to the Illinois Behavioral Health Workforce Center a list of email addresses or email communications, subject to data privacy and confidentiality laws, of all licensed behavioral health professionals exclusively for purposes of collecting data related to the behavioral health workforce in Illinois. Effective immediately.

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning regulation.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Behavioral Health Workforce Data Collection Act.

Section 5. Purpose. The purpose of this Act is to: (1) promote, preserve, and protect public health by enabling the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation to collect and disseminate demographic and professional data from behavioral health professionals; (2) allow policy groups, advocates, and other stakeholders to use the data to identify workforce shortages by region and specialty; (3) facilitate the development of targeted recruitment, education, and retention programs; and (4) inform public policy decisions to address future workforce needs.

Section 10. Definitions. As used in this Act:

"Behavioral health professional" means: (1) licensed clinical psychologists; (2) licensed clinical social workers (LCSWs); (3) licensed social workers (LSWs); (4) licensed professional counselors (LPCs); (5) licensed clinical professional counselors (LCPCs); (6) licensed marriage and family therapists (LMFTs); (7) licensed clinical marriage and family therapists (LCMFTs); (8) licensed behavioral analysts; (9) licensed professional music therapists; (10) licensed advanced practice psychiatric nurses, as defined in Section 1-101.3 of the Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities Code; (10) licensed physicians; (11) occupational therapists; and (12) any other professionals authorized by the State to provide behavioral health or psychotherapy services.

"Department" means the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation.

"Shortage area" means a region identified as lacking an adequate number of behavioral health professionals to meet community needs.

Section 15. Data collection requirements.

(a) The Department shall collect data from behavioral health professionals at the time of:

(1) initial application for licensure; and

(2) renewal of an active license.

(b) The data collected shall include, but is not limited to, the following categories:

(1) gender or gender identity;

(2) race or ethnicity.;

(3) languages spoken;

(4) sexual orientation (optional);

(5) disability status (optional);

(6) anticipated year of retirement;

(7) type of employer or primary practice setting (such as private practice, hospital, community health center, telehealth, or school);

(8) work hours, including hours spent in direct patient care and telehealth;

(9) area of practice or specialty; and

(10) zip code of the primary practice location.

(c) The Department shall ensure the data collection process is secure and adheres to State and federal privacy laws, including de-identification of personal data.

Section 20. Public use of data.

(a) The Department shall make the collected data publicly available in an aggregated, de-identified format. The data shall be published in a format that allows policy groups, advocates, and other stakeholders to:

(1) monitor the diversity, linguistic capacity, and availability of the behavioral health workforce;

(2) identify regions and specialties with severe shortages; and

(3) forecast future workforce needs.

(b) The Department shall publish the aggregated data annually by January 31 on its website and through other accessible formats.

Section 25. Rulemaking authority. The Department shall adopt rules necessary to implement this Act. The rules shall include:

(1) procedures for collecting the required data at application and renewal;

(2) standards for protecting the privacy of individuals providing data; and

(3) processes for disseminating de-identified aggregated data.

Section 30. Privacy and confidentiality. The Department shall comply with all applicable State and federal laws regarding data privacy and confidentiality. Personal identifiers shall not be disclosed in any reports or data sets made publicly available.

Section 35. Behavioral Health Workforce Center access.

(a) For a period of 2 years following the effective date of this Act, the Department shall provide to the Illinois Behavioral Health Workforce Center a list of email addresses of all licensed behavioral health professionals defined under Section 10. The list shall be used exclusively for purposes of collecting data related to the behavioral health workforce in Illinois.

(b) In lieu of providing email addresses, the Department may agree to distribute email communications on behalf of the Behavioral Health Workforce Center. These communications must be limited to those necessary to fulfill the data collection purposes described in this Section.

(c) Any data collected by the Behavioral Health Workforce Center under this Section must comply with all applicable State and federal privacy laws and must not be shared or disclosed for purposes unrelated to workforce analysis and development.

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