Public Act 097-0381
 
HB2982 EnrolledLRB097 10532 KTG 51304 b

    AN ACT concerning health.
 
    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
Regional Integrated Behavioral Health Networks Act.
 
    Section 5. Legislative Findings. The General Assembly
recognizes that an estimated 25% of Illinoisans aged 18 years
or older have experienced a mental or substance use disorder,
an estimated 700,000 Illinois adults aged 18 years or older
have a serious mental illness and an estimated 240,000 Illinois
children and adolescents have a serious emotional disturbance.
And on any given day, many go without treatment because it is
not available or accessible. Recent federal and State fiscal
crises have exacerbated an already deteriorating mental health
and substance abuse (behavioral health) treatment system that
is characterized by fragmentation, geographic disparities,
inadequate funding, psychiatric and other mental health
workforce shortages, lack of transportation, and overuse of
acute and emergency care by persons in crisis who are unable to
obtain treatment from less intensive community alternatives.
The failure to treat mental and substance use illnesses has
human and financial consequences: human suffering and loss of
function; increased use of hospital emergency departments;
increased use of all medical services; increased unemployment
and lack of productivity; lack of meaningful engagement in
family and communities; school failure; homelessness;
incarceration; and, in some instances, death. The citizens of
Illinois with mental and substance use illnesses need an
organized and integrated system of care that recognizes
regional differences and is able to deliver the right care to
the right person at the right time.
 
    Section 10. Purpose. The purpose of this Act is to require
the Department of Human Services to facilitate the creation of
Regional Integrated Behavioral Health Networks (hereinafter
"Networks") for the purpose of ensuring and improving access to
appropriate mental health and substance abuse (hereinafter
"behavioral health") services throughout Illinois by providing
a platform for the organization of all relevant health, mental
health, substance abuse, and other community entities, and by
providing a mechanism to use and channel financial and other
resources efficiently and effectively. Networks may be located
in each of the Department of Human Services geographic regions.
 
    Section 15. Goals. Goals shall include, but not be limited
to, the following: enabling persons with mental and substance
use illnesses to access clinically appropriate, evidence-based
services, regardless of where they reside in the State and
particularly in rural areas; improving access to mental health
and substance abuse services throughout Illinois, but
especially in rural Illinois communities, by fostering
innovative financing and collaboration among a variety of
health, behavioral health, social service, and other community
entities and by supporting the development of
regional-specific planning and strategies; facilitating the
integration of behavioral health services with primary and
other medical services, advancing opportunities under federal
health reform initiatives; ensuring actual or
technologically-assisted access to the entire continuum of
integrated care, including the provision of services in the
areas of prevention, consumer or patient assessment and
diagnosis, psychiatric care, case coordination, crisis and
emergency care, acute inpatient and outpatient treatment in
private hospitals and from other community providers, support
services, and community residential settings; identifying
funding for persons who do not have insurance and do not
qualify for State and federal healthcare payment programs such
as Medicaid or Medicare; and improving access to transportation
in rural areas.
 
    Section 20. Steering Committee and Networks.
    (a) To achieve these goals, the Department of Human
Services shall convene a Regional Integrated Behavioral Health
Networks Steering Committee (hereinafter "Steering Committee")
comprised of State agencies involved in the provision,
regulation, or financing of health, mental health, substance
abuse, rehabilitation, and other services. These include, but
shall not be limited to, the following agencies:
        (1) The Department of Healthcare and Family Services.
        (2) The Department of Human Services and its Divisions
    of Mental Illness and Alcoholism and Substance Abuse
    Services.
        (3) The Department of Public Health, including its
    Center for Rural Health.
    The Steering Committee shall include a representative from
each Network. The agencies of the Steering Committee are
directed to work collaboratively to provide consultation,
advice, and leadership to the Networks in facilitating
communication within and across multiple agencies and in
removing regulatory barriers that may prevent Networks from
accomplishing the goals. The Steering Committee collectively
or through one of its member Agencies shall also provide
technical assistance to the Networks.
    (b) There also shall be convened Networks in each of the
Department of Human Services' regions comprised of
representatives of community stakeholders represented in the
Network, including when available, but not limited to, relevant
trade and professional associations representing hospitals,
community providers, public health care, hospice care, long
term care, law enforcement, emergency medical service,
physicians trained in psychiatry; an organization that
advocates on behalf of federally qualified health centers, an
organization that advocates on behalf of persons suffering with
mental illness and substance abuse disorders, an organization
that advocates on behalf of persons with disabilities, an
organization that advocates on behalf of persons who live in
rural areas, an organization that advocates on behalf of
persons who live in medically underserved areas; and others
designated by the Steering Committee or the Networks. A member
from each Network may choose a representative who may serve on
the Steering Committee.
 
    Section 25. Development of Network Plans. Each Network
shall develop a plan for its respective region that addresses
the following:
    (a) Inventory of all mental health and substance abuse
treatment services, primary health care facilities and
services, private hospitals, State-operated psychiatric
hospitals, long term care facilities, social services,
transportation services, and any services available to serve
persons with mental and substance use illnesses.
    (b) Identification of unmet community needs, including,
but not limited to, the following:
        (1) Waiting lists in community mental health and
    substance abuse services.
        (2) Hospital emergency department use by persons with
    mental and substance use illnesses, including volume,
    length of stay, and challenges associated with obtaining
    psychiatric assessment.
        (3) Difficulty obtaining admission to inpatient
    facilities, and reasons therefore.
        (4) Availability of primary care providers in the
    community, including Federally Qualified Health Centers
    and Rural Health Centers.
        (5) Availability of psychiatrists and mental health
    professionals.
        (6) Transportation issues.
        (7) Other.
    (c) Identification of opportunities to improve access to
mental and substance abuse services through the integration of
specialty behavioral health services with primary care,
including, but not limited to, the following:
        (1) Availability of Federally Qualified Health Centers
    in community with mental health staff.
        (2) Development of accountable care organizations or
    other primary care entities.
        (3) Availability of acute care hospitals with
    specialized psychiatric capacity.
        (4) Community providers with an interest in
    collaborating with acute care providers.
    (d) Development of a plan to address community needs,
including a specific timeline for implementation of specific
objectives and establishment of evaluation measures. The
comprehensive plan should include the complete continuum of
behavioral health services, including, but not limited to, the
following:
        (1) Prevention.
        (2) Client assessment and diagnosis.
        (3) An array of outpatient behavioral health services.
        (4) Case coordination.
        (5) Crisis and emergency services.
        (6) Treatment, including inpatient psychiatric
    services in public and private hospitals.
        (7) Long term care facilities.
        (8) Community residential alternatives to
    institutional settings.
        (9) Primary care services.
 
    Section 30. Timeline. The Network plans shall be prepared
within 6 months of establishment of the Network. The Steering
Committee shall assist the Networks in the development of plans
by providing technical expertise and in facilitating funding
support and opportunities for the development of services
identified under each of the plans.
 
    Section 35. Report to Governor and General Assembly. The
Steering Committee shall report to the Governor and General
Assembly the status of each regional plan, including the
recommendations of the Network Councils to accomplish their
goals and improve access to behavioral health services. The
report shall also contain performance measures, including
changes to the behavioral health services capacity in the
region; any waiting lists for community services; volume and
wait times in hospital emergency departments for access to
behavioral health services; development of primary
care-behavioral health partnerships or barriers to their
formation; and funding challenges and opportunities. This
report shall be submitted on an annual basis.
 
    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect January
1, 2012.