Sen. Don Harmon

Filed: 4/23/2018

 

 


 

 


 
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1
AMENDMENT TO SENATE BILL 3237

2    AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend Senate Bill 3237 by replacing
3everything after the enacting clause with the following:
 
4    "Section 5. The Department of Human Services Act is amended
5by changing Section 1-17 as follows:
 
6    (20 ILCS 1305/1-17)
7    Sec. 1-17. Inspector General.
8    (a) Nature and purpose. It is the express intent of the
9General Assembly to ensure the health, safety, and financial
10condition of individuals receiving services in this State due
11to mental illness, developmental disability, or both by
12protecting those persons from acts of abuse, neglect, or both
13by service providers. To that end, the Office of the Inspector
14General for the Department of Human Services is created to
15investigate and report upon allegations of the abuse, neglect,
16or financial exploitation of individuals receiving services

 

 

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1within mental health facilities, developmental disabilities
2facilities, and community agencies operated, licensed, funded
3or certified by the Department of Human Services, but not
4licensed or certified by any other State agency.
5    (b) Definitions. The following definitions apply to this
6Section:
7    "Adult student with a disability" means an adult student,
8age 18 through 21, inclusive, with an Individual Education
9Program, other than a resident of a facility licensed by the
10Department of Children and Family Services in accordance with
11the Child Care Act of 1969. For purposes of this definition,
12"through age 21, inclusive", means through the day before the
13student's 22nd birthday.
14    "Agency" or "community agency" means (i) a community agency
15licensed, funded, or certified by the Department, but not
16licensed or certified by any other human services agency of the
17State, to provide mental health service or developmental
18disabilities service, or (ii) a program licensed, funded, or
19certified by the Department, but not licensed or certified by
20any other human services agency of the State, to provide mental
21health service or developmental disabilities service.
22    "Aggravating circumstance" means a factor that is
23attendant to a finding and that tends to compound or increase
24the culpability of the accused.
25    "Allegation" means an assertion, complaint, suspicion, or
26incident involving any of the following conduct by an employee,

 

 

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1facility, or agency against an individual or individuals:
2mental abuse, physical abuse, sexual abuse, neglect, or
3financial exploitation.
4    "Day" means working day, unless otherwise specified.
5    "Deflection" means a situation in which an individual is
6presented for admission to a facility or agency, and the
7facility staff or agency staff do not admit the individual.
8"Deflection" includes triage, redirection, and denial of
9admission.
10    "Department" means the Department of Human Services.
11    "Developmental disability" means "developmental
12disability" as defined in the Mental Health and Developmental
13Disabilities Code.
14    "Egregious neglect" means a finding of neglect as
15determined by the Inspector General that (i) represents a gross
16failure to adequately provide for, or a callused indifference
17to, the health, safety, or medical needs of an individual and
18(ii) results in an individual's death or other serious
19deterioration of an individual's physical condition or mental
20condition.
21    "Employee" means any person who provides services at the
22facility or agency on-site or off-site. The service
23relationship can be with the individual or with the facility or
24agency. Also, "employee" includes any employee or contractual
25agent of the Department of Human Services or the community
26agency involved in providing or monitoring or administering

 

 

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1mental health or developmental disability services. This
2includes but is not limited to: owners, operators, payroll
3personnel, contractors, subcontractors, and volunteers.
4    "Facility" or "State-operated facility" means a mental
5health facility or developmental disabilities facility
6operated by the Department.
7    "Financial exploitation" means taking unjust advantage of
8an individual's assets, property, or financial resources
9through deception, intimidation, or conversion for the
10employee's, facility's, or agency's own advantage or benefit.
11    "Finding" means the Office of Inspector General's
12determination regarding whether an allegation is
13substantiated, unsubstantiated, or unfounded.
14    "Health Care Worker Registry" or "Registry" means the
15Health Care Worker Registry under the Health Care Worker
16Background Check Act.
17    "Individual" means any person receiving mental health
18service, developmental disabilities service, or both from a
19facility or agency, while either on-site or off-site.
20    "Mental abuse" means the use of demeaning, intimidating, or
21threatening words, signs, gestures, or other actions by an
22employee about an individual and in the presence of an
23individual or individuals that results in emotional distress or
24maladaptive behavior, or could have resulted in emotional
25distress or maladaptive behavior, for any individual present.
26    "Mental illness" means "mental illness" as defined in the

 

 

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1Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities Code.
2    "Mentally ill" means having a mental illness.
3    "Mitigating circumstance" means a condition that (i) is
4attendant to a finding, (ii) does not excuse or justify the
5conduct in question, but (iii) may be considered in evaluating
6the severity of the conduct, the culpability of the accused, or
7both the severity of the conduct and the culpability of the
8accused.
9    "Neglect" means an employee's, agency's, or facility's
10failure to provide adequate medical care, personal care, or
11maintenance and that, as a consequence, (i) causes an
12individual pain, injury, or emotional distress, (ii) results in
13either an individual's maladaptive behavior or the
14deterioration of an individual's physical condition or mental
15condition, or (iii) places the individual's health or safety at
16substantial risk.
17    "Person with a developmental disability" means a person
18having a developmental disability.
19    "Physical abuse" means an employee's non-accidental and
20inappropriate contact with an individual that causes bodily
21harm. "Physical abuse" includes actions that cause bodily harm
22as a result of an employee directing an individual or person to
23physically abuse another individual.
24    "Recommendation" means an admonition, separate from a
25finding, that requires action by the facility, agency, or
26Department to correct a systemic issue, problem, or deficiency

 

 

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1identified during an investigation.
2    "Required reporter" means any employee who suspects,
3witnesses, or is informed of an allegation of any one or more
4of the following: mental abuse, physical abuse, sexual abuse,
5neglect, or financial exploitation.
6    "Secretary" means the Chief Administrative Officer of the
7Department.
8    "Sexual abuse" means any sexual contact or intimate
9physical contact between an employee and an individual,
10including an employee's coercion or encouragement of an
11individual to engage in sexual behavior that results in sexual
12contact, intimate physical contact, sexual behavior, or
13intimate physical behavior. Sexual abuse also includes (i) an
14employee's actions that result in the sending or showing of
15sexually explicit images to an individual via computer,
16cellular phone, electronic mail, portable electronic device,
17or other media with or without contact with the individual or
18(ii) an employee's posting of sexually explicit images of an
19individual online or elsewhere whether or not there is contact
20with the individual.
21    "Sexually explicit images" includes, but is not limited to,
22any material which depicts nudity, sexual conduct, or
23sado-masochistic abuse, or which contains explicit and
24detailed verbal descriptions or narrative accounts of sexual
25excitement, sexual conduct, or sado-masochistic abuse.
26    "Substantiated" means there is a preponderance of the

 

 

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1evidence to support the allegation.
2    "Unfounded" means there is no credible evidence to support
3the allegation.
4    "Unsubstantiated" means there is credible evidence, but
5less than a preponderance of evidence to support the
6allegation.
7    (c) Appointment. The Governor shall appoint, and the Senate
8shall confirm, an Inspector General. The Inspector General
9shall be appointed for a term of 4 years and shall function
10within the Department of Human Services and report to the
11Secretary and the Governor.
12    (d) Operation and appropriation. The Inspector General
13shall function independently within the Department with
14respect to the operations of the Office, including the
15performance of investigations and issuance of findings and
16recommendations. The appropriation for the Office of Inspector
17General shall be separate from the overall appropriation for
18the Department.
19    (e) Powers and duties. The Inspector General shall
20investigate reports of suspected mental abuse, physical abuse,
21sexual abuse, neglect, or financial exploitation of
22individuals in any mental health or developmental disabilities
23facility or agency and shall have authority to take immediate
24action to prevent any one or more of the following from
25happening to individuals under its jurisdiction: mental abuse,
26physical abuse, sexual abuse, neglect, or financial

 

 

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1exploitation. Upon written request of an agency of this State,
2the Inspector General may assist another agency of the State in
3investigating reports of the abuse, neglect, or abuse and
4neglect of persons with mental illness, persons with
5developmental disabilities, or persons with both. To comply
6with the requirements of subsection (k) of this Section, the
7Inspector General shall also review all reportable deaths for
8which there is no allegation of abuse or neglect. Nothing in
9this Section shall preempt any duties of the Medical Review
10Board set forth in the Mental Health and Developmental
11Disabilities Code. The Inspector General shall have no
12authority to investigate alleged violations of the State
13Officials and Employees Ethics Act. Allegations of misconduct
14under the State Officials and Employees Ethics Act shall be
15referred to the Office of the Governor's Executive Inspector
16General for investigation.
17    (f) Limitations. The Inspector General shall not conduct an
18investigation within an agency or facility if that
19investigation would be redundant to or interfere with an
20investigation conducted by another State agency. The Inspector
21General shall have no supervision over, or involvement in, the
22routine programmatic, licensing, funding, or certification
23operations of the Department. Nothing in this subsection limits
24investigations by the Department that may otherwise be required
25by law or that may be necessary in the Department's capacity as
26central administrative authority responsible for the operation

 

 

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1of the State's mental health and developmental disabilities
2facilities.
3    (g) Rulemaking authority. The Inspector General shall
4promulgate rules establishing minimum requirements for
5reporting allegations as well as for initiating, conducting,
6and completing investigations based upon the nature of the
7allegation or allegations. The rules shall clearly establish
8that if 2 or more State agencies could investigate an
9allegation, the Inspector General shall not conduct an
10investigation that would be redundant to, or interfere with, an
11investigation conducted by another State agency. The rules
12shall further clarify the method and circumstances under which
13the Office of Inspector General may interact with the
14licensing, funding, or certification units of the Department in
15preventing further occurrences of mental abuse, physical
16abuse, sexual abuse, neglect, egregious neglect, and financial
17exploitation.
18    (h) Training programs. The Inspector General shall (i)
19establish a comprehensive program to ensure that every person
20authorized to conduct investigations receives ongoing training
21relative to investigation techniques, communication skills,
22and the appropriate means of interacting with persons receiving
23treatment for mental illness, developmental disability, or
24both mental illness and developmental disability, and (ii)
25establish and conduct periodic training programs for facility
26and agency employees concerning the prevention and reporting of

 

 

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1any one or more of the following: mental abuse, physical abuse,
2sexual abuse, neglect, egregious neglect, or financial
3exploitation. Nothing in this Section shall be deemed to
4prevent the Office of Inspector General from conducting any
5other training as determined by the Inspector General to be
6necessary or helpful.
7    (i) Duty to cooperate.
8        (1) The Inspector General shall at all times be granted
9    access to any facility or agency for the purpose of
10    investigating any allegation, conducting unannounced site
11    visits, monitoring compliance with a written response, or
12    completing any other statutorily assigned duty. The
13    Inspector General shall conduct unannounced site visits to
14    each facility at least annually for the purpose of
15    reviewing and making recommendations on systemic issues
16    relative to preventing, reporting, investigating, and
17    responding to all of the following: mental abuse, physical
18    abuse, sexual abuse, neglect, egregious neglect, or
19    financial exploitation.
20        (2) Any employee who fails to cooperate with an Office
21    of the Inspector General investigation is in violation of
22    this Act. Failure to cooperate with an investigation
23    includes, but is not limited to, any one or more of the
24    following: (i) creating and transmitting a false report to
25    the Office of the Inspector General hotline, (ii) providing
26    false information to an Office of the Inspector General

 

 

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1    Investigator during an investigation, (iii) colluding with
2    other employees to cover up evidence, (iv) colluding with
3    other employees to provide false information to an Office
4    of the Inspector General investigator, (v) destroying
5    evidence, (vi) withholding evidence, or (vii) otherwise
6    obstructing an Office of the Inspector General
7    investigation. Additionally, any employee who, during an
8    unannounced site visit or written response compliance
9    check, fails to cooperate with requests from the Office of
10    the Inspector General is in violation of this Act.
11    (j) Subpoena powers. The Inspector General shall have the
12power to subpoena witnesses and compel the production of all
13documents and physical evidence relating to his or her
14investigations and any hearings authorized by this Act. This
15subpoena power shall not extend to persons or documents of a
16labor organization or its representatives insofar as the
17persons are acting in a representative capacity to an employee
18whose conduct is the subject of an investigation or the
19documents relate to that representation. Any person who
20otherwise fails to respond to a subpoena or who knowingly
21provides false information to the Office of the Inspector
22General by subpoena during an investigation is guilty of a
23Class A misdemeanor.
24    (k) Reporting allegations and deaths.
25        (1) Allegations. If an employee witnesses, is told of,
26    or has reason to believe an incident of mental abuse,

 

 

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1    physical abuse, sexual abuse, neglect, or financial
2    exploitation has occurred, the employee, agency, or
3    facility shall report the allegation by phone to the Office
4    of the Inspector General hotline according to the agency's
5    or facility's procedures, but in no event later than 4
6    hours after the initial discovery of the incident,
7    allegation, or suspicion of any one or more of the
8    following: mental abuse, physical abuse, sexual abuse,
9    neglect, or financial exploitation. A required reporter as
10    defined in subsection (b) of this Section who knowingly or
11    intentionally fails to comply with these reporting
12    requirements is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor.
13        (2) Deaths. Absent an allegation, a required reporter
14    shall, within 24 hours after initial discovery, report by
15    phone to the Office of the Inspector General hotline each
16    of the following:
17            (i) Any death of an individual occurring within 14
18        calendar days after discharge or transfer of the
19        individual from a residential program or facility.
20            (ii) Any death of an individual occurring within 24
21        hours after deflection from a residential program or
22        facility.
23            (iii) Any other death of an individual occurring at
24        an agency or facility or at any Department-funded site.
25        (3) Retaliation. It is a violation of this Act for any
26    employee or administrator of an agency or facility to take

 

 

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1    retaliatory action against an employee who acts in good
2    faith in conformance with his or her duties as a required
3    reporter.
4    (l) Reporting to law enforcement.
5        (1) Reporting criminal acts. Within 24 hours after
6    determining that there is credible evidence indicating
7    that a criminal act may have been committed or that special
8    expertise may be required in an investigation, the
9    Inspector General shall notify the Department of State
10    Police or other appropriate law enforcement authority, or
11    ensure that such notification is made. The Department of
12    State Police shall investigate any report from a
13    State-operated facility indicating a possible murder,
14    sexual assault, or other felony by an employee. All
15    investigations conducted by the Inspector General shall be
16    conducted in a manner designed to ensure the preservation
17    of evidence for possible use in a criminal prosecution.
18        (2) Reporting allegations of adult students with
19    disabilities. Upon receipt of a reportable allegation
20    regarding an adult student with a disability, the
21    Department's Office of the Inspector General shall
22    determine whether the allegation meets the criteria for the
23    Domestic Abuse Program under the Abuse of Adults with
24    Disabilities Intervention Act. If the allegation is
25    reportable to that program, the Office of the Inspector
26    General shall initiate an investigation. If the allegation

 

 

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1    is not reportable to the Domestic Abuse Program, the Office
2    of the Inspector General shall make an expeditious referral
3    to the respective law enforcement entity. If the alleged
4    victim is already receiving services from the Department,
5    the Office of the Inspector General shall also make a
6    referral to the respective Department of Human Services'
7    Division or Bureau.
8    (m) Investigative reports. Upon completion of an
9investigation, the Office of Inspector General shall issue an
10investigative report identifying whether the allegations are
11substantiated, unsubstantiated, or unfounded. Within 10
12business days after the transmittal of a completed
13investigative report substantiating an allegation, finding an
14allegation is unsubstantiated, or if a recommendation is made,
15the Inspector General shall provide the investigative report on
16the case to the Secretary and to the director of the facility
17or agency where any one or more of the following occurred:
18mental abuse, physical abuse, sexual abuse, neglect, egregious
19neglect, or financial exploitation. The director of the
20facility or agency shall be responsible for maintaining the
21confidentiality of the investigative report consistent with
22State and federal law. In a substantiated case, the
23investigative report shall include any mitigating or
24aggravating circumstances that were identified during the
25investigation. If the case involves substantiated neglect, the
26investigative report shall also state whether egregious

 

 

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1neglect was found. An investigative report may also set forth
2recommendations. All investigative reports prepared by the
3Office of the Inspector General shall be considered
4confidential and shall not be released except as provided by
5the law of this State or as required under applicable federal
6law. Unsubstantiated and unfounded reports shall not be
7disclosed except as allowed under Section 6 of the Abused and
8Neglected Long Term Care Facility Residents Reporting Act. Raw
9data used to compile the investigative report shall not be
10subject to release unless required by law or a court order.
11"Raw data used to compile the investigative report" includes,
12but is not limited to, any one or more of the following: the
13initial complaint, witness statements, photographs,
14investigator's notes, police reports, or incident reports. If
15the allegations are substantiated, the accused shall be
16provided with a redacted copy of the investigative report.
17Death reports where there was no allegation of abuse or neglect
18shall only be released pursuant to applicable State or federal
19law or a valid court order.
20    (n) Written responses, clarification requests, and
21reconsideration requests.
22        (1) Written responses. Within 30 calendar days from
23    receipt of a substantiated investigative report or an
24    investigative report which contains recommendations,
25    absent a reconsideration request, the facility or agency
26    shall file a written response that addresses, in a concise

 

 

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1    and reasoned manner, the actions taken to: (i) protect the
2    individual; (ii) prevent recurrences; and (iii) eliminate
3    the problems identified. The response shall include the
4    implementation and completion dates of such actions. If the
5    written response is not filed within the allotted 30
6    calendar day period, the Secretary shall determine the
7    appropriate corrective action to be taken.
8        (2) Requests for clarification. Reconsideration
9    requests. The facility, agency, victim or guardian, or the
10    subject employee may request that the Office of Inspector
11    General reconsider or clarify the finding or findings for
12    which clarification is sought. its finding based upon
13    additional information.
14        (3) Requests for reconsideration. The facility,
15    agency, victim or guardian, or the subject employee may
16    request that the Office of the Inspector General reconsider
17    the finding or findings or the recommendations. A request
18    for reconsideration shall be subject to a multi-layer
19    review and shall include at least one reviewer who did not
20    participate in the investigation or approval of the
21    original investigative report. After the multi-layer
22    review process has been completed, the Inspector General
23    shall make the final determination on the reconsideration
24    request. The investigation shall be reopened if the
25    reconsideration determination finds that additional
26    information is needed to complete the investigative

 

 

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1    record.
2    (o) Disclosure of the finding by the Inspector General. The
3Inspector General shall disclose the finding of an
4investigation to the following persons: (i) the Governor, (ii)
5the Secretary, (iii) the director of the facility or agency,
6(iv) the alleged victims and their guardians, (v) the
7complainant, and (vi) the accused. This information shall
8include whether the allegations were deemed substantiated,
9unsubstantiated, or unfounded.
10    (p) Secretary review. Upon review of the Inspector
11General's investigative report and any agency's or facility's
12written response, the Secretary shall accept or reject the
13written response and notify the Inspector General of that
14determination. The Secretary may further direct that other
15administrative action be taken, including, but not limited to,
16any one or more of the following: (i) additional site visits,
17(ii) training, (iii) provision of technical assistance
18relative to administrative needs, licensure or certification,
19or (iv) the imposition of appropriate sanctions.
20    (q) Action by facility or agency. Within 30 days of the
21date the Secretary approves the written response or directs
22that further administrative action be taken, the facility or
23agency shall provide an implementation report to the Inspector
24General that provides the status of the action taken. The
25facility or agency shall be allowed an additional 30 days to
26send notice of completion of the action or to send an updated

 

 

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1implementation report. If the action has not been completed
2within the additional 30-day 30 day period, the facility or
3agency shall send updated implementation reports every 60 days
4until completion. The Inspector General shall conduct a review
5of any implementation plan that takes more than 120 days after
6approval to complete, and shall monitor compliance through a
7random review of approved written responses, which may include,
8but are not limited to: (i) site visits, (ii) telephone
9contact, and (iii) requests for additional documentation
10evidencing compliance.
11    (r) Sanctions. Sanctions, if imposed by the Secretary under
12Subdivision (p)(iv) of this Section, shall be designed to
13prevent further acts of mental abuse, physical abuse, sexual
14abuse, neglect, egregious neglect, or financial exploitation
15or some combination of one or more of those acts at a facility
16or agency, and may include any one or more of the following:
17        (1) Appointment of on-site monitors.
18        (2) Transfer or relocation of an individual or
19    individuals.
20        (3) Closure of units.
21        (4) Termination of any one or more of the following:
22    (i) Department licensing, (ii) funding, or (iii)
23    certification.
24    The Inspector General may seek the assistance of the
25Illinois Attorney General or the office of any State's Attorney
26in implementing sanctions.

 

 

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1    (s) Health Care Worker Registry.
2        (1) Reporting to the Registry. The Inspector General
3    shall report to the Department of Public Health's Health
4    Care Worker Registry, a public registry, the identity and
5    finding of each employee of a facility or agency against
6    whom there is a final investigative report containing a
7    substantiated allegation of physical or sexual abuse,
8    financial exploitation, or egregious neglect of an
9    individual.
10        (2) Notice to employee. Prior to reporting the name of
11    an employee, the employee shall be notified of the
12    Department's obligation to report and shall be granted an
13    opportunity to request an administrative hearing, the sole
14    purpose of which is to determine if the substantiated
15    finding warrants reporting to the Registry. Notice to the
16    employee shall contain a clear and concise statement of the
17    grounds on which the report to the Registry is based, offer
18    the employee an opportunity for a hearing, and identify the
19    process for requesting such a hearing. Notice is sufficient
20    if provided by certified mail to the employee's last known
21    address. If the employee fails to request a hearing within
22    30 days from the date of the notice, the Inspector General
23    shall report the name of the employee to the Registry.
24    Nothing in this subdivision (s)(2) shall diminish or impair
25    the rights of a person who is a member of a collective
26    bargaining unit under the Illinois Public Labor Relations

 

 

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1    Act or under any other federal labor statute.
2        (3) Registry hearings. If the employee requests an
3    administrative hearing, the employee shall be granted an
4    opportunity to appear before an administrative law judge to
5    present reasons why the employee's name should not be
6    reported to the Registry. The Department shall bear the
7    burden of presenting evidence that establishes, by a
8    preponderance of the evidence, that the substantiated
9    finding warrants reporting to the Registry. After
10    considering all the evidence presented, the administrative
11    law judge shall make a recommendation to the Secretary as
12    to whether the substantiated finding warrants reporting
13    the name of the employee to the Registry. The Secretary
14    shall render the final decision. The Department and the
15    employee shall have the right to request that the
16    administrative law judge consider a stipulated disposition
17    of these proceedings.
18        (4) Testimony at Registry hearings. A person who makes
19    a report or who investigates a report under this Act shall
20    testify fully in any judicial proceeding resulting from
21    such a report, as to any evidence of abuse or neglect, or
22    the cause thereof. No evidence shall be excluded by reason
23    of any common law or statutory privilege relating to
24    communications between the alleged perpetrator of abuse or
25    neglect, or the individual alleged as the victim in the
26    report, and the person making or investigating the report.

 

 

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1    Testimony at hearings is exempt from the confidentiality
2    requirements of subsection (f) of Section 10 of the Mental
3    Health and Developmental Disabilities Confidentiality Act.
4        (5) Employee's rights to collateral action. No
5    reporting to the Registry shall occur and no hearing shall
6    be set or proceed if an employee notifies the Inspector
7    General in writing, including any supporting
8    documentation, that he or she is formally contesting an
9    adverse employment action resulting from a substantiated
10    finding by complaint filed with the Illinois Civil Service
11    Commission, or which otherwise seeks to enforce the
12    employee's rights pursuant to any applicable collective
13    bargaining agreement. If an action taken by an employer
14    against an employee as a result of a finding of physical
15    abuse, sexual abuse, or egregious neglect is overturned
16    through an action filed with the Illinois Civil Service
17    Commission or under any applicable collective bargaining
18    agreement and if that employee's name has already been sent
19    to the Registry, the employee's name shall be removed from
20    the Registry.
21        (6) Removal from Registry. At any time after the report
22    to the Registry, but no more than once in any 12-month
23    period, an employee may petition the Department in writing
24    to remove his or her name from the Registry. Upon receiving
25    notice of such request, the Inspector General shall conduct
26    an investigation into the petition. Upon receipt of such

 

 

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1    request, an administrative hearing will be set by the
2    Department. At the hearing, the employee shall bear the
3    burden of presenting evidence that establishes, by a
4    preponderance of the evidence, that removal of the name
5    from the Registry is in the public interest. The parties
6    may jointly request that the administrative law judge
7    consider a stipulated disposition of these proceedings.
8    (t) Review of Administrative Decisions. The Department
9shall preserve a record of all proceedings at any formal
10hearing conducted by the Department involving Health Care
11Worker Registry hearings. Final administrative decisions of
12the Department are subject to judicial review pursuant to
13provisions of the Administrative Review Law.
14    (u) Quality Care Board. There is created, within the Office
15of the Inspector General, a Quality Care Board to be composed
16of 7 members appointed by the Governor with the advice and
17consent of the Senate. One of the members shall be designated
18as chairman by the Governor. Of the initial appointments made
19by the Governor, 4 Board members shall each be appointed for a
20term of 4 years and 3 members shall each be appointed for a
21term of 2 years. Upon the expiration of each member's term, a
22successor shall be appointed for a term of 4 years. In the case
23of a vacancy in the office of any member, the Governor shall
24appoint a successor for the remainder of the unexpired term.
25    Members appointed by the Governor shall be qualified by
26professional knowledge or experience in the area of law,

 

 

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1investigatory techniques, or in the area of care of the
2mentally ill or care of persons with developmental
3disabilities. Two members appointed by the Governor shall be
4persons with a disability or a parent of a person with a
5disability. Members shall serve without compensation, but
6shall be reimbursed for expenses incurred in connection with
7the performance of their duties as members.
8    The Board shall meet quarterly, and may hold other meetings
9on the call of the chairman. Four members shall constitute a
10quorum allowing the Board to conduct its business. The Board
11may adopt rules and regulations it deems necessary to govern
12its own procedures.
13    The Board shall monitor and oversee the operations,
14policies, and procedures of the Inspector General to ensure the
15prompt and thorough investigation of allegations of neglect and
16abuse. In fulfilling these responsibilities, the Board may do
17the following:
18        (1) Provide independent, expert consultation to the
19    Inspector General on policies and protocols for
20    investigations of alleged abuse, neglect, or both abuse and
21    neglect.
22        (2) Review existing regulations relating to the
23    operation of facilities.
24        (3) Advise the Inspector General as to the content of
25    training activities authorized under this Section.
26        (4) Recommend policies concerning methods for

 

 

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1    improving the intergovernmental relationships between the
2    Office of the Inspector General and other State or federal
3    offices.
4    (v) Annual report. The Inspector General shall provide to
5the General Assembly and the Governor, no later than January 1
6of each year, a summary of reports and investigations made
7under this Act for the prior fiscal year with respect to
8individuals receiving mental health or developmental
9disabilities services. The report shall detail the imposition
10of sanctions, if any, and the final disposition of any
11corrective or administrative action directed by the Secretary.
12The summaries shall not contain any confidential or identifying
13information of any individual, but shall include objective data
14identifying any trends in the number of reported allegations,
15the timeliness of the Office of the Inspector General's
16investigations, and their disposition, for each facility and
17Department-wide, for the most recent 3-year time period. The
18report shall also identify, by facility, the staff-to-patient
19ratios taking account of direct care staff only. The report
20shall also include detailed recommended administrative actions
21and matters for consideration by the General Assembly.
22    (w) Program audit. The Auditor General shall conduct a
23program audit of the Office of the Inspector General on an
24as-needed basis, as determined by the Auditor General. The
25audit shall specifically include the Inspector General's
26compliance with the Act and effectiveness in investigating

 

 

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1reports of allegations occurring in any facility or agency. The
2Auditor General shall conduct the program audit according to
3the provisions of the Illinois State Auditing Act and shall
4report its findings to the General Assembly no later than
5January 1 following the audit period.
6    (x) Nothing in this Section shall be construed to mean that
7an individual is a victim of abuse or neglect because of health
8care services appropriately provided or not provided by health
9care professionals.
10    (y) Nothing in this Section shall require a facility,
11including its employees, agents, medical staff members, and
12health care professionals, to provide a service to an
13individual in contravention of that individual's stated or
14implied objection to the provision of that service on the
15ground that that service conflicts with the individual's
16religious beliefs or practices, nor shall the failure to
17provide a service to an individual be considered abuse under
18this Section if the individual has objected to the provision of
19that service based on his or her religious beliefs or
20practices.
21(Source: P.A. 99-143, eff. 7-27-15; 99-323, eff. 8-7-15;
2299-642, eff. 7-28-16; 100-313, eff. 8-24-17; 100-432, eff.
238-25-17; revised 9-27-17.)".