Public Act 0432 102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HB2433 Enrolled LRB102 12728 CPF 18067 b

Public Act 102-0432

AN ACT concerning regulation.

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

Section 5. The Nursing Home Care Act is amended by changing Sections 2-204 and 3-702 as follows:

(210 ILCS 45/2-204) (from Ch. 111 1/2, par. 4152-204)

Sec. 2-204. The Director shall appoint a Long-Term Care Facility Advisory Board to consult with the Department and the residents' advisory councils created under Section 2-203.

(a) The Board shall be comprised of the following persons:

(1) The Director who shall serve as chairman, ex officio and nonvoting; and

(2) One representative each of the Department of Healthcare and Family Services, the Department of Human Services, the Department on Aging, and the Office of the State Fire Marshal, all nonvoting members;

(2.5) One member who represents local health departments who is a nonvoting member;

(3) One member who shall be a physician licensed to practice medicine in all its branches;

(4) One member who shall be a registered nurse selected from the recommendations of professional nursing associations;

(5) Four members who shall be selected from the recommendations by organizations whose membership consists of facilities;

(6) Two members who shall represent the general public who are not members of a residents' advisory council established under Section 2-203 and who have no responsibility for management or formation of policy or financial interest in a facility;

(7) One member who is a member of a residents' advisory council established under Section 2-203 and is capable of actively participating on the Board; and

(8) One member who shall be selected from the recommendations of consumer organizations which engage solely in advocacy or legal representation on behalf of residents and their immediate families.

(b) The terms of those members of the Board appointed prior to the effective date of this amendatory Act of 1988 shall expire on December 31, 1988. Members of the Board created by this amendatory Act of 1988 shall be appointed to serve for terms as follows: 3 for 2 years, 3 for 3 years and 3 for 4 years. The member of the Board added by this amendatory Act of 1989 shall be appointed to serve for a term of 4 years. Each successor member shall be appointed for a term of 4 years. Any member appointed to fill a vacancy occurring prior to the expiration of the term for which his predecessor was appointed shall be appointed for the remainder of such term. The Board shall meet as frequently as the chairman deems necessary, but not less than 4 times each year. Upon request by 4 or more members the chairman shall call a meeting of the Board. The affirmative vote of 6 members of the Board shall be necessary for Board action. A member of the Board can designate a replacement to serve at the Board meeting and vote in place of the member by submitting a letter of designation to the chairman prior to or at the Board meeting. The Board members shall be reimbursed for their actual expenses incurred in the performance of their duties.

(c) The Advisory Board shall advise the Department of Public Health on all aspects of its responsibilities under this Act and the Specialized Mental Health Rehabilitation Act of 2013, including the format and content of any rules promulgated by the Department of Public Health. Any such rules, except emergency rules promulgated pursuant to Section 5-45 of the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act, promulgated without obtaining the advice of the Advisory Board are null and void. In the event that the Department fails to follow the advice of the Board, the Department shall, prior to the promulgation of such rules, transmit a written explanation of the reason thereof to the Board. During its review of rules, the Board shall analyze the economic and regulatory impact of those rules. If the Advisory Board, having been asked for its advice, fails to advise the Department within 90 days, the rules shall be considered acted upon.

(Source: P.A. 97-38, eff. 6-28-11; 98-104, eff. 7-22-13; 98-463, eff. 8-16-13.)

(210 ILCS 45/3-702) (from Ch. 111 1/2, par. 4153-702)

Sec. 3-702. (a) A person who believes that this Act or a rule promulgated under this Act may have been violated may request an investigation. The request may be submitted to the Department in writing, by telephone, by electronic means, or by personal visit. An oral complaint shall be reduced to writing by the Department. The Department shall make available, through its website and upon request, information regarding the oral and phone intake processes and the list of questions that will be asked of the complainant. The Department shall request information identifying the complainant, including the name, address and telephone number, to help enable appropriate follow-up. The Department shall act on such complaints via on-site visits or other methods deemed appropriate to handle the complaints with or without such identifying information, as otherwise provided under this Section. The complainant shall be informed that compliance with such request is not required to satisfy the procedures for filing a complaint under this Act. The Department must notify complainants that complaints with less information provided are far more difficult to respond to and investigate.

(b) The substance of the complaint shall be provided in writing to the licensee, owner, or administrator no earlier than at the commencement of an on-site inspection of the facility which takes place pursuant to the complaint.

(c) The Department shall not disclose the name of the complainant unless the complainant consents in writing to the disclosure or the investigation results in a judicial proceeding, or unless disclosure is essential to the investigation. The complainant shall be given the opportunity to withdraw the complaint before disclosure. Upon the request of the complainant, the Department may permit the complainant or a representative of the complainant to accompany the person making the on-site inspection of the facility.

(d) Upon receipt of a complaint, the Department shall determine whether this Act or a rule promulgated under this Act has been or is being violated. The Department shall investigate all complaints alleging abuse or neglect within 7 days after the receipt of the complaint except that complaints of abuse or neglect which indicate that a resident's life or safety is in imminent danger shall be investigated within 24 hours after receipt of the complaint. All other complaints shall be investigated within 30 days after the receipt of the complaint. The Department employees investigating a complaint shall conduct a brief, informal exit conference with the facility to alert its administration of any suspected serious deficiency that poses a direct threat to the health, safety or welfare of a resident to enable an immediate correction for the alleviation or elimination of such threat. Such information and findings discussed in the brief exit conference shall become a part of the investigating record but shall not in any way constitute an official or final notice of violation as provided under Section 3-301. All complaints shall be classified as "an invalid report", "a valid report", or "an undetermined report". For any complaint classified as "a valid report", the Department must determine within 30 working days if any rule or provision of this Act has been or is being violated.

(d-1) The Department shall, whenever possible, combine an on-site investigation of a complaint in a facility with other inspections in order to avoid duplication of inspections.

(e) In all cases, the Department shall inform the complainant of its findings within 10 days of its determination unless otherwise indicated by the complainant, and the complainant may direct the Department to send a copy of such findings to another person. The Department's findings may include comments or documentation provided by either the complainant or the licensee pertaining to the complaint. The Department shall also notify the facility of such findings within 10 days of the determination, but the name of the complainant or residents shall not be disclosed in this notice to the facility. The notice of such findings shall include a copy of the written determination; the correction order, if any; the warning notice, if any; the inspection report; or the State licensure form on which the violation is listed.

(f) A written determination, correction order, or warning notice concerning a complaint, together with the facility's response, shall be available for public inspection, but the name of the complainant or resident shall not be disclosed without his consent.

(g) A complainant who is dissatisfied with the determination or investigation by the Department may request a hearing under Section 3-703. The facility shall be given notice of any such hearing and may participate in the hearing as a party. If a facility requests a hearing under Section 3-703 which concerns a matter covered by a complaint, the complainant shall be given notice and may participate in the hearing as a party. A request for a hearing by either a complainant or a facility shall be submitted in writing to the Department within 30 days after the mailing of the Department's findings as described in subsection (e) of this Section. Upon receipt of the request the Department shall conduct a hearing as provided under Section 3-703.

(g-5) The Department shall conduct an annual review and make a report concerning the complaint process that includes the number of complaints received, the breakdown of anonymous and non-anonymous complaints and whether the complaints were substantiated or not, the total number of substantiated complaints that were completed in the time frame determined under subsection (d), and any other complaint information requested by the Long-Term Care Facility Advisory Board created under Section 2-204 of this Act or the Illinois Long-Term Care Council created under Section 4.04a of the Illinois Act on the Aging. This report shall be provided to the Long-Term Care Facility Advisory Board, and the Illinois Long-Term Care Council, and the General Assembly. The Long-Term Care Facility Advisory Board and the Illinois Long-Term Care Council shall review the report and suggest any changes deemed necessary to the Department for review and action, including how to investigate and substantiate anonymous complaints.

(h) Any person who knowingly transmits a false report to the Department commits the offense of disorderly conduct under subsection (a)(8) of Section 26-1 of the Criminal Code of 2012.

(Source: P.A. 98-988, eff. 8-18-14; 99-642, eff. 7-28-16.)

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

Effective Date: 8/20/2021