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1 | AN ACT concerning health facilities.
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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 Nursing Home Care Act is amended by adding | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
5 | Section 3-212.5 as follows: | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
6 | (210 ILCS 45/3-212.5 new) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
7 | Sec. 3-212.5. Alternative facility survey process. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
8 | (a) The Department shall implement
alternative procedures | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
9 | for the long-term care facility survey process as
authorized | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
10 | under this Section. These alternative survey process | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
11 | procedures seek to do the following: | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
12 | (1) Use Department resources more effectively and | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
13 | efficiently to
target problem areas. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
14 | (2) Use other existing or new mechanisms
to provide | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
15 | objective assessments of quality and to measure
quality | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
16 | improvement. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
17 | (3) Provide for frequent collaborative
interaction of | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
18 | facility staff and surveyors rather than a
punitive | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
19 | approach. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
20 | (4) Reward a facility that has
performed very well by | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
21 | extending intervals between full surveys. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
22 | The Department shall pursue changes in federal law
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23 | necessary to accomplish this process and shall apply for any
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24 | necessary federal waivers or approval. If a federal waiver is | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
25 | approved, the Department shall promptly implement the waiver by | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
26 | adopting emergency rules in accordance with Section 5-45 of the | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
27 | Illinois Administrative Procedure Act. For purposes of that | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
28 | Act, the adoption of those rules is deemed to be an emergency | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
29 | and necessary for the public interest, safety, or welfare. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
30 | (b) The Department must extend the time period between | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
31 | standard surveys up
to 30 months based on the criteria | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
32 | established in subsection (d). In using the alternative survey |
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1 | schedule, the requirement
for the statewide average to not | ||||||
2 | exceed 12 months does not apply. | ||||||
3 | (c) The Department shall
develop a process for identifying | ||||||
4 | the survey cycles for nursing facilities based on the | ||||||
5 | compliance history of the
facility. This process may use a | ||||||
6 | range of months for survey
intervals. At a minimum, the process | ||||||
7 | must be based on
information from the last 2 survey cycles and | ||||||
8 | must take into
consideration any deficiencies issued as the | ||||||
9 | result of a survey
or a complaint investigation during the | ||||||
10 | interval. A nursing facility with a finding of substandard | ||||||
11 | quality of care
or a finding of immediate jeopardy is not | ||||||
12 | entitled to a survey
interval greater than 12 months. The | ||||||
13 | Department shall alter
the survey cycle for a specific skilled | ||||||
14 | nursing facility based
on findings identified through the | ||||||
15 | completion of a survey, a
monitoring visit, or a complaint | ||||||
16 | investigation. The
Department must also take into | ||||||
17 | consideration information other
than the facility's compliance | ||||||
18 | history. | ||||||
19 | (d) The Department shall provide public notice of the
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20 | classification process and shall identify the selected survey
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21 | cycles for each nursing facility. The classification
system | ||||||
22 | must be based on an analysis of the findings made during
the | ||||||
23 | past 2 standard survey intervals, but it only takes one
survey | ||||||
24 | or complaint finding to modify the interval. The Department | ||||||
25 | shall also take into consideration
information obtained from | ||||||
26 | residents and family members in each
nursing facility and from | ||||||
27 | other sources such as
employees and ombudsmen in determining | ||||||
28 | the appropriate survey
intervals for facilities. | ||||||
29 | (e) The Department
shall conduct at least one monitoring | ||||||
30 | visit on an annual basis
for every nursing facility that has | ||||||
31 | been selected for a
survey cycle greater than 12 months. The | ||||||
32 | Department shall
develop protocols for the monitoring visits; | ||||||
33 | the protocols shall be less
extensive than the requirements for | ||||||
34 | a standard survey. The
Department shall use the criteria set | ||||||
35 | forth in this subsection to
determine whether additional | ||||||
36 | monitoring visits to a facility
will be required. |
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1 | The criteria for determining whether additional monitoring | ||||||
2 | visits will be required shall include, but need not be limited | ||||||
3 | to, the
following: | ||||||
4 | (1) Changes in the ownership or administration of the | ||||||
5 | facility,
or changes in the direction of the facility's | ||||||
6 | nursing service. | ||||||
7 | (2) Changes in the facility's quality indicators that
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8 | might evidence a decline in the facility's quality of care. | ||||||
9 | (3) Reductions in staffing or an increase in the
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10 | utilization of temporary nursing personnel. | ||||||
11 | (4) Complaint information or other information that
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12 | identifies potential concerns for the quality of the care | ||||||
13 | and
services provided in the facility. | ||||||
14 | (f) The Department
shall establish a process for surveying | ||||||
15 | and monitoring facilities that require a survey interval of | ||||||
16 | less than 15
months. This information shall identify the steps | ||||||
17 | that the
Department must take to monitor the facility in | ||||||
18 | addition to
the standard survey. | ||||||
19 | (g) The
implementation of an alternative survey process for | ||||||
20 | the State
must not result in any reduction of funding that | ||||||
21 | would have been
provided to the State survey agency for survey | ||||||
22 | and enforcement
activity based on the completion of full | ||||||
23 | standard surveys for
each skilled nursing facility in the | ||||||
24 | State. | ||||||
25 | (h) The Department
shall expand the State survey agency's | ||||||
26 | training and educational efforts for skilled nursing | ||||||
27 | facilities,
residents and family members, residents and family | ||||||
28 | councils,
long-term care ombudsman programs, and the general | ||||||
29 | public. | ||||||
30 | (i) The Department shall develop
a process for the | ||||||
31 | evaluation of the effectiveness of an
alternative survey | ||||||
32 | process conducted under this Section.
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