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92_HB5213 LRB9211810DJmg 1 AN ACT in relation to mental health. 2 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, 3 represented in the General Assembly: 4 Section 5. The Protection and Advocacy for 5 Developmentally Disabled Persons Act is amended by changing 6 Section 1 as follows: 7 (405 ILCS 40/1) (from Ch. 91 1/2, par. 1151) 8 Sec. 1. Agency to administer State plan. The Governor 9 may designate a private not-for-profit corporation as the 10 agency to administer a State plan to protect and advocate the 11 rights of persons with developmental disabilities pursuant to 12 the requirements of the federal Developmental Disabilities 13 Assistance and Bill of Rights Act, 42 U.S.C. 6001 to 6081, as 14 now or hereafter amended. The designated agency may pursue 15 legal, administrative, and other appropriate remedies to 16 ensure the protection of the rights of such persons who are 17 receiving treatment, services or habilitation within this 18 State. The agency designated by the Governor shall be 19 independent of any agency which provides treatment, services, 20 guardianship, or habilitation to persons with developmental 21 disabilities, and such agency shall not be administered by 22 the Governor's Planning Council on Developmental Disabilities 23 or any successor State Planning Council organized pursuant to 24 federal law. 25 The designated agency may receive and expend funds to 26 protect and advocate the rights of persons with developmental 27 disabilities. In order to properly exercise its powers and 28 duties, such agency shall have access to developmental 29 disability facilities and mental health facilities, as 30 defined under Sections 1-107 and 1-114 of the Mental Health 31 and Developmental Disabilities Code, and facilities as -2- LRB9211810DJmg 1 defined in Section 1-113 of the Nursing Home Care Act. Such 2 access shall be granted for the purposes of meeting with 3 residents and staff, informing them of services available 4 from the agency, distributing written information about the 5 agency and the rights of persons with developmental 6 disabilities, conducting scheduled and unscheduled visits, 7 and performing other activities designed to protect the 8 rights of persons with developmental disabilities. The agency 9 also shall have access, for the purpose of inspection and 10 copying, to the records of a person with developmental 11 disabilities who resides in any such facility subject to the 12 limitations of this Act, the Mental Health and Developmental 13 Disabilities Confidentiality Act, and the Nursing Home Care 14 Act. The agency also shall have access, for the purpose of 15 inspection and copying, to the records of a person with 16 developmental disabilities who resides in any such facility 17 if (1) a complaint is received by the agency from or on 18 behalf of the person with a developmental disability, and (2) 19 such person does not have a legal guardian or the State or 20 the designee of the State is the legal guardian of such 21 person. The designated agency shall provide written notice to 22 the person with developmental disabilities and the State 23 guardian of the nature of the complaint based upon which the 24 designated agency has gained access to the records. No record 25 or the contents of any record shall be redisclosed by the 26 designated agency unless the person with developmental 27 disabilities and the State guardian are provided 7 days 28 advance written notice, except in emergency situations, of 29 the designated agency's intent to redisclose such record, 30 during which time the person with developmental disabilities 31 or the State guardian may seek to judicially enjoin the 32 designated agency's redisclosure of such record on the 33 grounds that such redisclosure is contrary to the interests 34 of the person with developmental disabilities. Any person who -3- LRB9211810DJmg 1 in good faith complains to the designated agency on behalf of 2 a person with developmental disabilities, or provides 3 information or participates in the investigation of any such 4 complaint shall have immunity from any liability, civil, 5 criminal or otherwise, and shall not be subject to any 6 penalties, sanctions, restrictions or retaliation as a 7 consequence of making such complaint, providing such 8 information or participating in such investigation. 9 Upon request, the designated agency shall be entitled to 10 inspect and copy any records or other materials which may 11 further the agency's investigation of problems affecting 12 numbers of persons with developmental disabilities. When 13 required by law any personally identifiable information of 14 persons with developmental disabilities shall be removed from 15 the records. However, the designated agency may not inspect 16 or copy any records or other materials when the removal of 17 personally identifiable information imposes an unreasonable 18 burden on mental health and developmental disabilities 19 facilities pursuant to the Mental Health and Developmental 20 Disabilities Code or facilities as defined in the Nursing 21 Home Care Act. 22 The Governor shall not redesignate the agency to 23 administer the State plan to protect and advocate the rights 24 of persons with developmental disabilities unless there is 25 good cause for the redesignation and unless notice of the 26 intent to make such redesignation is given to persons with 27 developmental disabilities or their representatives, the 28 federal Secretary of Health and Human Services, and the 29 General Assembly at least 60 days prior thereto. 30 As used in this Act, the term "developmental disability" 31 means a severe, chronic disability of a person which: 32 (A) is attributable to a mental or physical 33 impairment or combination of mental and physical 34 impairments; -4- LRB9211810DJmg 1 (B) is manifested before the person attains age 22; 2 (C) is likely to continue indefinitely; 3 (D) results in substantial functional limitations 4 in 3 or more of the following areas of major life 5 activity: (i) self-care, (ii) receptive and expressive 6 language, (iii) learning, (iv) mobility, (v) 7 self-direction, (vi) capacity for independent living, and 8 (vii) economic self-sufficiency; and 9 (E) reflects the person's need for combination and 10 sequence of special, interdisciplinary or generic care, 11 treatment or other services which are of lifelong or 12 extended duration and are individually planned and 13 coordinated. 14 (Source: P.A. 88-380.)