SB2726 Engrossed

LRB093 19921 BDD 45664 b






1
    AN ACT concerning the Department on Aging.

 
2
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
 
3
represented in the General Assembly:


 
4
    Section 5. The Illinois Act on the Aging is amended  by 
5
changing Section 4.04 as follows:
 



6
    (20 ILCS 105/4.04)  (from Ch. 23, par. 6104.04)



7
    Sec. 4.04. Long Term Care Ombudsman Program. 

8
    (a) Long Term Care Ombudsman Program. The Department shall

9
establish a Long Term Care Ombudsman Program, through the 
10
Office of State
Long Term Care Ombudsman ("the Office"), in 
11
accordance with the provisions of
the Older Americans Act of 
12
1965, as now or hereafter amended.

13
    (b) Definitions. As used in this Section, unless the 
14
context requires
otherwise:


15
        (1) "Access" has the same meaning as in Section 1-104 
16
of the Nursing
Home Care Act, as now or hereafter amended; 
17
that is, it means the right to:


18
            (i) Enter any long term care facility or assisted 
19
living or shared
housing establishment or supportive 
20
living facility;


21
            (ii) Communicate privately and without restriction 
22
with any resident
who consents to the communication;


23
            (iii) Seek consent to communicate privately and 
24
without restriction
with any resident;


25
            (iv) Inspect the clinical and other records of a 
26
resident with the
express written consent of the 
27
resident;


28
            (v) Observe all areas of the long term care 
29
facility or supportive
living facilities, assisted 
30
living or shared housing establishment except the

31
living area of any resident who protests the 
32
observation.


 


 






SB2726 Engrossed
- 2 -
LRB093 19921 BDD 45664 b




1
        (2) "Long Term Care Facility" means (i) any facility as 
2
defined by Section
1-113 of the Nursing Home Care Act, as 
3
now or hereafter amended; and (ii) any
skilled nursing 
4
facility or a nursing facility which meets the
requirements 
5
of Section 1819(a), (b), (c), and (d) or Section 1919(a), 
6
(b),
(c), and (d) of the Social Security Act, as now or 
7
hereafter amended (42
U.S.C. 1395i-3(a), (b), (c), and (d) 
8
and 42 U.S.C. 1396r(a), (b), (c), and
(d)).


9
        (2.5) "Assisted living establishment" and "shared 
10
housing establishment"
have the meanings given those terms 
11
in Section 10 of the Assisted Living and
Shared Housing 
12
Act.


13
        (2.7) "Supportive living facility" means a facility 
14
established under
Section 5-5.01a of the Illinois Public 
15
Aid Code.


16
        (3) "State Long Term Care Ombudsman" means any person 
17
employed by the
Department to fulfill
the requirements of 
18
the Office of State Long Term Care Ombudsman as
required 
19
under the Older Americans Act of 1965, as now or hereafter 
20
amended,
and Departmental policy.


21
        (3.1) "Ombudsman" means any designated representative 
22
of a regional long
term care ombudsman program; provided 
23
that the representative, whether he is
paid for or 
24
volunteers his ombudsman services, shall be qualified and

25
designated by the Office to perform the duties of an 
26
ombudsman as specified by
the Department in rules and in 
27
accordance with the provisions of
the Older Americans Act 
28
of 1965, as now or hereafter amended.

29
    (c) Ombudsman; rules. The Office of State Long Term Care 
30
Ombudsman shall
be composed of at least one full-time ombudsman 
31
and shall include a system of
designated regional long term 
32
care ombudsman programs. Each regional program
shall be 
33
designated by the State Long Term Care Ombudsman as a 
34
subdivision of
the Office and any representative of a regional 
35
program shall be treated as a
representative of the Office.

36
    The Department, in consultation with the Office, shall 
 


 






SB2726 Engrossed
- 3 -
LRB093 19921 BDD 45664 b




1
promulgate
administrative rules in accordance with the 
2
provisions of the Older Americans
Act of 1965, as now or 
3
hereafter amended, to establish the responsibilities of
the 
4
Department and the Office of State Long Term Care Ombudsman and 
5
the
designated regional Ombudsman programs. The administrative 
6
rules shall include
the responsibility of the Office and 
7
designated regional programs to
investigate and resolve 
8
complaints made by or on behalf of residents of long
term care 
9
facilities, supportive living facilities, and assisted living 
10
and
shared housing establishments relating to actions, 
11
inaction, or
decisions of providers, or their representatives, 
12
of long term care
facilities, of supported living facilities, 
13
of assisted living and shared
housing establishments, of public 
14
agencies, or of social services agencies,
which may adversely 
15
affect the health, safety, welfare, or rights of such

16
residents.
When necessary and appropriate, representatives of 
17
the Office shall refer
complaints to the appropriate regulatory 
18
State agency.
The Department, in consultation with the Office, 
19
shall cooperate with the
Department of Human Services in 
20
providing information and training to
designated regional long 
21
term care ombudsman programs about the appropriate
assessment 
22
and treatment (including information about appropriate 
23
supportive
services, treatment options, and assessment of 
24
rehabilitation potential) of
persons with mental illness 
25
(other than Alzheimer's disease and related
disorders).
26
    The State Long Term Care Ombudsman and all other ombudsmen, 
27
as defined in paragraph (3.1) of subsection (b)  must submit to 
28
background checks under the Health Care Worker Background Check 
29
Act and receive training, as prescribed by the Illinois 
30
Department on Aging, before visiting facilities.  The training 
31
must include information specific to assisted living 
32
establishments, supportive living facilities, and shared 
33
housing establishments and to the rights of residents 
34
guaranteed under the corresponding Acts and administrative 
35
rules.


36
    (d) Access and visitation rights.


 


 






SB2726 Engrossed
- 4 -
LRB093 19921 BDD 45664 b




1
        (1) In accordance with subparagraphs (A) and (E) of 
2
paragraph (3) of
subsection (c) of Section 1819
and 
3
subparagraphs (A) and (E) of paragraph (3) of subsection 
4
(c) of Section
1919 of the Social Security Act, as now or 
5
hereafter amended (42 U.S.C.
1395i-3 (c)(3)(A) and (E) and 
6
42 U.S.C. 1396r (c)(3)(A) and (E)), and
Section
712 of the 
7
Older Americans Act of 1965, as now or hereafter
amended 
8
(42 U.S.C. 3058f), a long term care facility, supportive 
9
living
facility, assisted living
establishment, and shared 
10
housing establishment must:


11
            (i) permit immediate access to any resident by a 
12
designated
ombudsman; and


13
            (ii) permit representatives of the Office, with 
14
the permission of the
resident's legal representative 
15
or legal guardian, to examine a resident's
clinical and 
16
other records, and if a resident is unable to consent 
17
to such
review, and has no legal guardian, permit 
18
representatives of the Office
appropriate access, as 
19
defined by the Department, in consultation with the

20
Office, in administrative rules, to the resident's 
21
records.


22
        (2) Each long term care facility, supportive living 
23
facility, assisted
living establishment, and
shared 
24
housing establishment shall display, in multiple, 
25
conspicuous
public places within the facility accessible 
26
to both visitors and residents and
in an easily readable 
27
format, the address and phone number of the Office of the

28
Long Term Care Ombudsman, in a manner prescribed by the 
29
Office.

30
    (e) Immunity. An ombudsman or any representative of the 
31
Office participating
in the good faith performance of his or 
32
her official duties
shall have immunity from any liability 
33
(civil, criminal or otherwise) in
any proceedings (civil, 
34
criminal or otherwise) brought as a consequence of
the 
35
performance of his official duties.

36
    (f) Business offenses.


 


 






SB2726 Engrossed
- 5 -
LRB093 19921 BDD 45664 b




1
        (1) No person shall:


2
            (i) Intentionally prevent, interfere with, or 
3
attempt to impede in any
way any representative of the 
4
Office in the performance of his
official
duties under 
5
this Act and the Older Americans Act of 1965; or


6
            (ii) Intentionally retaliate, discriminate 
7
against, or effect reprisals
against any long term care 
8
facility resident or employee for contacting or

9
providing information to any representative of the 
10
Office.


11
        (2) A violation of this Section is a business offense, 
12
punishable by a
fine not to exceed $501.


13
        (3) The Director of Aging, in consultation with the 
14
Office, shall
notify the State's Attorney of the
county in 
15
which the long term care facility, supportive living 
16
facility, or
assisted living or shared housing 
17
establishment is located,
or the Attorney General, of any 
18
violations of this Section.

19
    (g) Confidentiality of records and identities. The 
20
Department shall
establish procedures for the disclosure by the 
21
State Ombudsman or the regional
ombudsmen
entities of files 
22
maintained by the program. The procedures shall provide that

23
the files and records may be disclosed only at the discretion 
24
of the State Long
Term Care
Ombudsman or the person designated 
25
by the State Ombudsman to disclose the files
and records, and 
26
the procedures shall prohibit the disclosure of the identity
of 
27
any complainant, resident, witness, or employee of a long term 
28
care provider
unless:


29
        (1) the complainant, resident, witness, or employee of 
30
a long term care
provider or his or her legal 
31
representative consents to the disclosure and the
consent 
32
is in writing;


33
        (2) the complainant, resident, witness, or employee of 
34
a long term care
provider gives consent orally; and the 
35
consent is documented contemporaneously
in writing in

36
accordance with such requirements as the Department shall 
 


 






SB2726 Engrossed
- 6 -
LRB093 19921 BDD 45664 b




1
establish; or


2
        (3) the disclosure is required by court order.

3
    (h) Legal representation. The Attorney General shall

4
provide legal representation to any representative of the 
5
Office
against
whom suit or other legal action is brought in 
6
connection with the
performance of the representative's 
7
official duties, in accordance with the
State Employee 
8
Indemnification Act.

9
    (i) Treatment by prayer and spiritual means. Nothing in 
10
this Act shall
be construed to authorize or require the medical 
11
supervision, regulation
or control of remedial care or 
12
treatment of any resident in a long term
care facility operated 
13
exclusively by and for members or adherents of any
church or 
14
religious denomination the tenets and practices of which 
15
include
reliance solely upon spiritual means through prayer for 
16
healing.

17
(Source: P.A. 93-241, eff. 7-22-03.)

 
18
    Section 10. The Health Care Worker Background Check Act is 
19
amended  by changing Section 15 as follows:
 



20
    (225 ILCS 46/15)



21
    Sec. 15. Definitions. For the purposes of this Act, the 
22
following
definitions apply:

23
    "Applicant" means an individual seeking employment with a 
24
health care
employer who has received a bona fide conditional 
25
offer of employment.

26
    "Conditional offer of employment" means a bona fide offer 
27
of employment by a
health care employer to an applicant, which 
28
is contingent upon the receipt of a
report from the Department 
29
of State Police indicating that the applicant does
not have a 
30
record of conviction of any of the criminal offenses enumerated 
31
in
Section 25.

32
    "Direct care" means the provision of nursing care or 
33
assistance with feeding,
dressing, movement, bathing, 
34
toileting, or other personal needs.  The entity
responsible for 
 


 






SB2726 Engrossed
- 7 -
LRB093 19921 BDD 45664 b




1
inspecting and licensing, certifying, or registering the

2
health care employer may, by administrative rule, prescribe 
3
guidelines for
interpreting this definition with regard to the 
4
health care employers that it
licenses.

5
    "Health care employer" means:

6
    (1) the owner or licensee of any of the
following:


7
        (i) a community living facility, as defined in the 
8
Community Living
Facilities Act;


9
        (ii) a life care facility, as defined in the Life Care 
10
Facilities Act;


11
        (iii) a long-term care facility, as defined in the 
12
Nursing Home Care Act;


13
        (iv) a home health agency, as defined in the Home 
14
Health Agency Licensing
Act;


15
        (v) a full hospice, as defined in the Hospice Program 
16
Licensing Act;


17
        (vi) a hospital, as defined in the Hospital Licensing 
18
Act;


19
        (vii) a community residential alternative, as defined 
20
in the Community
Residential Alternatives Licensing Act;


21
        (viii) a nurse agency, as defined in the Nurse Agency 
22
Licensing Act;


23
        (ix) a respite care provider, as defined in the Respite 
24
Program Act;


25
        (ix-a) an establishment licensed under the Assisted 
26
Living and Shared
Housing Act;


27
        (x) a supportive living program, as defined in the 
28
Illinois Public Aid
Code;


29
        (xi) early childhood intervention programs as 
30
described in 59 Ill. Adm.
Code 121;


31
        (xii) the University of Illinois Hospital, Chicago;


32
        (xiii) programs funded by the Department on Aging 
33
through the Community
Care Program;


34
        (xiv) programs certified to participate in the 
35
Supportive Living Program
authorized pursuant to Section 
36
5-5.01a of the Illinois Public Aid Code;


 


 






SB2726 Engrossed
- 8 -
LRB093 19921 BDD 45664 b




1
        (xv) programs listed by the Emergency Medical Services 
2
(EMS) Systems Act
as
Freestanding Emergency Centers;


3
        (xvi) locations licensed under the Alternative Health 
4
Care Delivery
Act;

5
    (2) a day training program certified by the Department of 
6
Human Services;
or

7
    (3) a community integrated living arrangement operated by a 
8
community
mental health and developmental service agency, as 
9
defined in the
Community-Integrated Living Arrangements 
10
Licensing and Certification Act; or
.

11
    (4) the State Long Term Care Ombudsman Program, including 
12
any regional long term care ombudsman programs under Section 
13
4.04 of the Illinois Act on the Aging, only for the purpose of 
14
securing background checks.

15
    "Initiate" means the obtaining of the authorization for a 
16
record check from
a student, applicant, or employee.  The 
17
educational entity or health care
employer or its designee 
18
shall transmit all necessary information and fees
to the 
19
Illinois State Police within 10 working days after receipt of 
20
the
authorization.

21
(Source: P.A. 91-598, eff. 1-1-00; 91-656, eff. 1-1-01; 92-16, 
22
eff.
6-28-01.)

 

23
    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect on 
24
January 1, 2005.