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| 1 | AN ACT concerning State government.
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| 2 | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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| 3 | represented in the General Assembly:
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| 4 | Section 5. The Department of Veterans' Affairs Act is | ||||||
| 5 | amended by adding Section 2.01c as follows: | ||||||
| 6 | (20 ILCS 2805/2.01c new) | ||||||
| 7 | Sec. 2.01c. Veterans Home; notice of infectious disease. | ||||||
| 8 | (a) As used in this Section, "infectious disease" means any | ||||||
| 9 | disease caused by a living organism or other pathogen, | ||||||
| 10 | including a fungus, bacteria, parasite, protozoan, prion, or | ||||||
| 11 | virus, that has a history of or potential for a significant | ||||||
| 12 | mortality rate among elderly or vulnerable populations, | ||||||
| 13 | including, but not limited to, strains of influenza, | ||||||
| 14 | Legionnaires' disease, and pneumonia. | ||||||
| 15 | (b) If a Veterans Home administrator or a member of the | ||||||
| 16 | administrative staff is notified that, within one month or | ||||||
| 17 | less, 2 or more persons residing within the Veterans Home are | ||||||
| 18 | diagnosed with an infectious disease by a physician licensed to | ||||||
| 19 | practice medicine in all its branches; a hospital licensed | ||||||
| 20 | under the Hospital Licensing Act or organized under the | ||||||
| 21 | University of Illinois Hospital Act; a long-term care facility | ||||||
| 22 | licensed under the Nursing Home Care Act; a freestanding | ||||||
| 23 | emergency center licensed under the Emergency Medical Services | ||||||
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| 1 | (EMS) Systems Act; a local health department; or any other | ||||||
| 2 | State agency or government entity, then, within 24 hours after | ||||||
| 3 | the facility is notified of the second diagnosis, the Veterans | ||||||
| 4 | Home must: | ||||||
| 5 | (1) provide a written notification of the incidence of | ||||||
| 6 | the infectious disease to each resident of the facility and | ||||||
| 7 | the resident's emergency contact or next of kin; | ||||||
| 8 | (2) post a notification of the incidence of the | ||||||
| 9 | infectious disease in a conspicuous place near the main | ||||||
| 10 | entrance to the Veterans Home; and | ||||||
| 11 | (3) provide a written notification to the Department of | ||||||
| 12 | Veterans' Affairs and the Department of Public Health of | ||||||
| 13 | the incidence of the infectious disease and of compliance | ||||||
| 14 | with the written notification requirements of paragraph | ||||||
| 15 | (1). | ||||||
| 16 | In addition to the initial written notifications, the Veterans | ||||||
| 17 | Home must provide written notifications of any updates on the | ||||||
| 18 | incidence of the infectious disease and any options that are | ||||||
| 19 | available to the residents. | ||||||
| 20 | The Department of Veterans' Affairs and the Department of | ||||||
| 21 | Public Health must post the notification of the incidence of | ||||||
| 22 | the infectious disease, any updates, and any options that are | ||||||
| 23 | available to the residents on their websites as soon as | ||||||
| 24 | practicable after receiving the notification, but in no event | ||||||
| 25 | shall the notice be posted later than the end of the next | ||||||
| 26 | business day.
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| 1 | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon | ||||||
| 2 | becoming law.
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