Illinois General Assembly - Full Text of Public Act 102-0182
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Public Act 102-0182


 

Public Act 0182 102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY

  
  
  

 


 
Public Act 102-0182
 
HB0704 EnrolledLRB102 12654 LNS 17993 b

    AN ACT concerning civil law.
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
 
    Section 5. The Health Care Surrogate Act is amended by
changing Section 10 as follows:
 
    (755 ILCS 40/10)  (from Ch. 110 1/2, par. 851-10)
    Sec. 10. Definitions.
    "Adult" means a person who is (i) 18 years of age or older
or (ii) an emancipated minor under the Emancipation of Minors
Act.
    "Artificial nutrition and hydration" means supplying food
and water through a conduit, such as a tube or intravenous
line, where the recipient is not required to chew or swallow
voluntarily, including, but not limited to, nasogastric tubes,
gastrostomies, jejunostomies, and intravenous infusions.
Artificial nutrition and hydration does not include assisted
feeding, such as spoon or bottle feeding.
    "Available" means that a person is not "unavailable". A
person is unavailable if (i) the person's existence is not
known, (ii) the person has not been able to be contacted by
telephone or mail, or (iii) the person lacks decisional
capacity, refuses to accept the office of surrogate, or is
unwilling to respond in a manner that indicates a choice among
the treatment matters at issue.
    "Attending physician" means the physician selected by or
assigned to the patient who has primary responsibility for
treatment and care of the patient and who is a licensed
physician in Illinois or a physician licensed in the state
where the patient is being treated. If more than one physician
shares that responsibility, any of those physicians may act as
the attending physician under this Act.
    "Close friend" means any person 18 years of age or older
who has exhibited special care and concern for the patient and
who presents an affidavit to the attending physician stating
that he or she (i) is a close friend of the patient, (ii) is
willing and able to become involved in the patient's health
care, and (iii) has maintained such regular contact with the
patient as to be familiar with the patient's activities,
health, and religious and moral beliefs. The affidavit must
also state facts and circumstances that demonstrate that
familiarity.
    "Death" means when, according to accepted medical
standards, there is (i) an irreversible cessation of
circulatory and respiratory functions or (ii) an irreversible
cessation of all functions of the entire brain, including the
brain stem.
    "Decisional capacity" means the ability to understand and
appreciate the nature and consequences of a decision regarding
medical treatment or forgoing life-sustaining treatment and
the ability to reach and communicate an informed decision in
the matter as determined by the attending physician.
    "Forgo life-sustaining treatment" means to withhold,
withdraw, or terminate all or any portion of life-sustaining
treatment with knowledge that the patient's death is likely to
result.
    "Guardian" means a court appointed guardian of the person
who serves as a representative of a minor or as a
representative of a person under legal disability.
    "Health care facility" means a type of health care
provider commonly known by a wide variety of titles, including
but not limited to, hospitals, medical centers, nursing homes,
rehabilitation centers, long term or tertiary care facilities,
and other facilities established to administer health care and
provide overnight stays in their ordinary course of business
or practice.
    "Health care provider" means a person that is licensed,
certified, or otherwise authorized or permitted by the law of
this State or licensed in the state where the patient is being
treated to administer health care in the ordinary course of
business or practice of a profession, including, but not
limited to, physicians, nurses, health care facilities, and
any employee, officer, director, agent, or person under
contract with such a person.
    "Imminent" (as in "death is imminent") means a
determination made by the attending physician according to
accepted medical standards that death will occur in a
relatively short period of time, even if life-sustaining
treatment is initiated or continued.
    "Life-sustaining treatment" means any medical treatment,
procedure, or intervention that, in the judgment of the
attending physician, when applied to a patient with a
qualifying condition, would not be effective to remove the
qualifying condition or would serve only to prolong the dying
process. Those procedures can include, but are not limited to,
assisted ventilation, renal dialysis, surgical procedures,
blood transfusions, and the administration of drugs,
antibiotics, and artificial nutrition and hydration.
    "Minor" means an individual who is not an adult as defined
in this Act.
    "Parent" means a person who is the natural or adoptive
mother or father of the child and whose parental rights have
not been terminated by a court of law.
    "Patient" means an adult or minor individual, unless
otherwise specified, under the care or treatment of a licensed
physician or other health care provider.
    "Person" means an individual, a corporation, a business
trust, a trust, a partnership, an association, a government, a
governmental subdivision or agency, or any other legal entity.
    "Qualifying condition" means the existence of one or more
of the following conditions in a patient certified in writing
in the patient's medical record by the attending physician and
by at least one other qualified physician:
        (1) "Terminal condition" means an illness or injury
    for which there is no reasonable prospect of cure or
    recovery, death is imminent, and the application of
    life-sustaining treatment would only prolong the dying
    process.
        (2) "Permanent unconsciousness" means a condition
    that, to a high degree of medical certainty, (i) will last
    permanently, without improvement, (ii) in which thought,
    sensation, purposeful action, social interaction, and
    awareness of self and environment are absent, and (iii)
    for which initiating or continuing life-sustaining
    treatment, in light of the patient's medical condition,
    provides only minimal medical benefit.
        (3) "Incurable or irreversible condition" means an
    illness or injury (i) for which there is no reasonable
    prospect of cure or recovery, (ii) that ultimately will
    cause the patient's death even if life-sustaining
    treatment is initiated or continued, (iii) that imposes
    severe pain or otherwise imposes an inhumane burden on the
    patient, and (iv) for which initiating or continuing
    life-sustaining treatment, in light of the patient's
    medical condition, provides only minimal medical benefit.
    The determination that a patient has a qualifying
condition creates no presumption regarding the application or
non-application of life-sustaining treatment. It is only after
a determination by the attending physician that the patient
has a qualifying condition that the surrogate decision maker
may consider whether or not to forgo life-sustaining
treatment. In making this decision, the surrogate shall weigh
the burdens on the patient of initiating or continuing
life-sustaining treatment against the benefits of that
treatment.
    "Qualified physician" means a physician licensed to
practice medicine in all of its branches in Illinois or a
physician licensed in the state where the patient is being
treated who has personally examined the patient.
    "Surrogate decision maker" means an adult individual or
individuals who (i) have decisional capacity, (ii) are
available upon reasonable inquiry, (iii) are willing to make
medical treatment decisions on behalf of a patient who lacks
decisional capacity, and (iv) are identified by the attending
physician in accordance with the provisions of this Act as the
person or persons who are to make those decisions in
accordance with the provisions of this Act.
(Source: P.A. 95-331, eff. 8-21-07.)
 
    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
becoming law.

Effective Date: 7/30/2021