State of Illinois
92nd General Assembly
Legislation

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92_HB5214

 
                                               LRB9211811DJmg

 1        AN ACT in relation to mental health.

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

 4        Section   5.    The   Protection   and    Advocacy    for
 5    Developmentally  Disabled  Persons Act is amended by changing
 6    Section 1 as follows:

 7        (405 ILCS 40/1) (from Ch. 91 1/2, par. 1151)
 8        Sec.  1.   The   Governor   may   designate   a   private
 9    not-for-profit  corporation  as  the  agency  to administer a
10    State plan to protect and advocate the rights of persons with
11    developmental disabilities pursuant to  the  requirements  of
12    the federal Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of
13    Rights  Act,  42  U.S.C.  6001  to  6081, as now or hereafter
14    amended.   The   designated   agency   may   pursue    legal,
15    administrative,  and other appropriate remedies to ensure the
16    protection of the rights of such persons  who  are  receiving
17    treatment,  services  or  habilitation within this State. The
18    agency designated by the Governor shall be independent of any
19    agency that which provides treatment, services, guardianship,
20    or habilitation to persons with  developmental  disabilities,
21    and  the  such  agency  shall  not  be  administered  by  the
22    Governor's  Planning Council on Developmental Disabilities or
23    any successor State Planning Council  organized  pursuant  to
24    federal law.
25        The  designated  agency  may  receive and expend funds to
26    protect and advocate the rights of persons with developmental
27    disabilities. In order to properly exercise  its  powers  and
28    duties,  such  agency  shall  have  access  to  developmental
29    disability   facilities  and  mental  health  facilities,  as
30    defined under Sections 1-107 and 1-114 of the  Mental  Health
31    and   Developmental  Disabilities  Code,  and  facilities  as
 
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 1    defined in Section 1-113 of the Nursing Home Care  Act.  Such
 2    access  shall  be  granted  for  the purposes of meeting with
 3    residents and staff, informing  them  of  services  available
 4    from  the  agency, distributing written information about the
 5    agency  and  the  rights  of   persons   with   developmental
 6    disabilities,  conducting  scheduled  and unscheduled visits,
 7    and performing  other  activities  designed  to  protect  the
 8    rights of persons with developmental disabilities. The agency
 9    also  shall  have  access,  for the purpose of inspection and
10    copying, to  the  records  of  a  person  with  developmental
11    disabilities  who resides in any such facility subject to the
12    limitations of this Act, the Mental Health and  Developmental
13    Disabilities  Confidentiality  Act, and the Nursing Home Care
14    Act. The agency also shall have access, for  the  purpose  of
15    inspection  and  copying,  to  the  records  of a person with
16    developmental disabilities who resides in any  such  facility
17    if  (1)  a  complaint  is  received  by the agency from or on
18    behalf of the person with a developmental disability, and (2)
19    such person does not have a legal guardian or  the  State  or
20    the  designee  of  the  State  is  the legal guardian of such
21    person. The designated agency shall provide written notice to
22    the person with  developmental  disabilities  and  the  State
23    guardian  of the nature of the complaint based upon which the
24    designated agency has gained access to the records. No record
25    or the contents of any record shall  be  redisclosed  by  the
26    designated   agency  unless  the  person  with  developmental
27    disabilities and the  State  guardian  are  provided  7  days
28    advance  written  notice,  except in emergency situations, of
29    the designated agency's intent  to  redisclose  such  record,
30    during  which time the person with developmental disabilities
31    or the State guardian  may  seek  to  judicially  enjoin  the
32    designated  agency's  redisclosure  of  such  record  on  the
33    grounds  that  such redisclosure is contrary to the interests
34    of the person with developmental disabilities. Any person who
 
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 1    in good faith complains to the designated agency on behalf of
 2    a  person  with  developmental  disabilities,   or   provides
 3    information  or participates in the investigation of any such
 4    complaint shall have  immunity  from  any  liability,  civil,
 5    criminal  or  otherwise,  and  shall  not  be  subject to any
 6    penalties,  sanctions,  restrictions  or  retaliation  as   a
 7    consequence   of   making   such  complaint,  providing  such
 8    information or participating in such investigation.
 9        Upon request, the designated agency shall be entitled  to
10    inspect  and  copy  any  records or other materials which may
11    further the  agency's  investigation  of  problems  affecting
12    numbers  of  persons  with  developmental  disabilities. When
13    required by law any personally  identifiable  information  of
14    persons with developmental disabilities shall be removed from
15    the  records.  However, the designated agency may not inspect
16    or copy any records or other materials when  the  removal  of
17    personally  identifiable  information imposes an unreasonable
18    burden  on  mental  health  and  developmental   disabilities
19    facilities  pursuant  to  the Mental Health and Developmental
20    Disabilities Code or facilities as  defined  in  the  Nursing
21    Home Care Act.
22        The   Governor   shall  not  redesignate  the  agency  to
23    administer the State plan to protect and advocate the  rights
24    of  persons  with  developmental disabilities unless there is
25    good cause for the redesignation and  unless  notice  of  the
26    intent  to  make  such redesignation is given to persons with
27    developmental  disabilities  or  their  representatives,  the
28    federal Secretary of  Health  and  Human  Services,  and  the
29    General Assembly at least 60 days prior thereto.
30        As  used in this Act, the term "developmental disability"
31    means a severe, chronic disability of a person which:
32             (A)  is  attributable  to  a  mental   or   physical
33        impairment   or   combination   of  mental  and  physical
34        impairments;
 
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 1             (B)  is manifested before the person attains age 22;
 2             (C)  is likely to continue indefinitely;
 3             (D)  results in substantial  functional  limitations
 4        in  3  or  more  of  the  following  areas  of major life
 5        activity: (i) self-care, (ii)  receptive  and  expressive
 6        language,    (iii)    learning,    (iv)   mobility,   (v)
 7        self-direction, (vi) capacity for independent living, and
 8        (vii) economic self-sufficiency; and
 9             (E)  reflects the person's need for combination  and
10        sequence  of  special, interdisciplinary or generic care,
11        treatment or other services  which  are  of  lifelong  or
12        extended   duration  and  are  individually  planned  and
13        coordinated.
14    (Source: P.A. 88-380.)

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