SB1564 EngrossedLRB099 05684 HEP 25727 b

1    AN ACT concerning civil law.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Health Care Right of Conscience Act is
5amended by changing Sections 2, 3, 6, and 9 and by adding
6Sections 6.1 and 6.2 as follows:
 
7    (745 ILCS 70/2)  (from Ch. 111 1/2, par. 5302)
8    Sec. 2. Findings and policy. The General Assembly finds and
9declares that people and organizations hold different beliefs
10about whether certain health care services are morally
11acceptable. It is the public policy of the State of Illinois to
12respect and protect the right of conscience of all persons who
13refuse to obtain, receive or accept, or who are engaged in, the
14delivery of, arrangement for, or payment of health care
15services and medical care whether acting individually,
16corporately, or in association with other persons; and to
17prohibit all forms of discrimination, disqualification,
18coercion, disability or imposition of liability upon such
19persons or entities by reason of their refusing to act contrary
20to their conscience or conscientious convictions in providing,
21paying for, or refusing to obtain, receive, accept, deliver,
22pay for, or arrange for the payment of health care services and
23medical care. It is also the public policy of the State of

 

 

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1Illinois to ensure that patients receive timely access to
2information and medically appropriate care.
3(Source: P.A. 90-246, eff. 1-1-98.)
 
4    (745 ILCS 70/3)  (from Ch. 111 1/2, par. 5303)
5    Sec. 3. Definitions. As used in this Act, unless the
6context clearly otherwise requires:
7    (a) "Health care" means any phase of patient care,
8including but not limited to, testing; diagnosis; prognosis;
9ancillary research; instructions; family planning,
10counselling, referrals, or any other advice in connection with
11the use or procurement of contraceptives and sterilization or
12abortion procedures; medication; or surgery or other care or
13treatment rendered by a physician or physicians, nurses,
14paraprofessionals or health care facility, intended for the
15physical, emotional, and mental well-being of persons;
16    (b) "Physician" means any person who is licensed by the
17State of Illinois under the Medical Practice Act of 1987;
18    (c) "Health care personnel" means any nurse, nurses' aide,
19medical school student, professional, paraprofessional or any
20other person who furnishes, or assists in the furnishing of,
21health care services;
22    (d) "Health care facility" means any public or private
23hospital, clinic, center, medical school, medical training
24institution, laboratory or diagnostic facility, physician's
25office, infirmary, dispensary, ambulatory surgical treatment

 

 

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1center or other institution or location wherein health care
2services are provided to any person, including physician
3organizations and associations, networks, joint ventures, and
4all other combinations of those organizations;
5    (e) "Conscience" means a sincerely held set of moral
6convictions arising from belief in and relation to God, or
7which, though not so derived, arises from a place in the life
8of its possessor parallel to that filled by God among adherents
9to religious faiths; and
10    (f) "Health care payer" means a health maintenance
11organization, insurance company, management services
12organization, or any other entity that pays for or arranges for
13the payment of any health care or medical care service,
14procedure, or product; and .
15    (g) "Undue delay" means unreasonable delay that causes
16impairment of the patient's health.
17    The above definitions include not only the traditional
18combinations and forms of these persons and organizations but
19also all new and emerging forms and combinations of these
20persons and organizations.
21(Source: P.A. 90-246, eff. 1-1-98.)
 
22    (745 ILCS 70/6)  (from Ch. 111 1/2, par. 5306)
23    Sec. 6. Duty of physicians and other health care personnel.
24Nothing in this Act shall relieve a physician from any duty,
25which may exist under any laws concerning current standards, of

 

 

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1normal medical practice or care practices and procedures, to
2inform his or her patient of the patient's condition,
3prognosis, legal treatment options, and risks and benefits of
4treatment options, provided, however, that such physician
5shall be under no duty to perform, assist, counsel, suggest,
6recommend, refer or participate in any way in any form of
7medical practice or health care service that is contrary to his
8or her conscience.
9    Nothing in this Act shall be construed so as to relieve a
10physician or other health care personnel from obligations under
11the law of providing emergency medical care.
12(Source: P.A. 90-246, eff. 1-1-98.)
 
13    (745 ILCS 70/6.1 new)
14    Sec. 6.1. Access to care and information protocols. All
15health care facilities shall adopt written access to care and
16information protocols that are designed to ensure that
17conscience-based objections do not cause impairment of
18patients' health and that explain how conscience-based
19objections will be addressed in a timely manner to facilitate
20patient health care services. The protections of Sections 4, 5,
217, 8, 9, 10, and 11 of this Act only apply if conscience-based
22refusals occur in accordance with these protocols. These
23protocols must, at a minimum, address the following:
24        (1) The health care facility, physician, or health care
25    personnel shall inform a patient of the patient's

 

 

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1    condition, prognosis, legal treatment options, and risks
2    and benefits of the treatment options in a timely manner,
3    consistent with current standards of medical practice or
4    care.
5        (2) When a health care facility, physician, or health
6    care personnel is unable to permit, perform, or participate
7    in a health care service that is a diagnostic or treatment
8    option requested by a patient because the health care
9    service is contrary to the conscience of the health care
10    facility, physician, or health care personnel, then the
11    patient shall either be provided the requested health care
12    service by others in the facility or be notified that the
13    health care will not be provided and be referred,
14    transferred, or given information in accordance with
15    paragraph (3).
16        (3) If requested by the patient or the legal
17    representative of the patient, the health care facility,
18    physician, or health care personnel shall: (i) refer the
19    patient to, or (ii) transfer the patient to, or (iii)
20    provide in writing information to the patient about other
21    health care providers who they reasonably believe may offer
22    the health care service the health care facility,
23    physician, or health personnel refuses to permit, perform,
24    or participate in because of a conscience-based objection.
25        (4) If requested by the patient or the legal
26    representative of the patient, the health care facility,

 

 

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1    physician, or health care personnel shall provide copies of
2    medical records to the patient or to another health care
3    professional or health care facility designated by the
4    patient in accordance with Illinois law, without undue
5    delay.
 
6    (745 ILCS 70/6.2 new)
7    Sec. 6.2. Permissible acts related to access to care and
8information protocols. Nothing in this Act shall be construed
9to prevent a health care facility from requiring that
10physicians or health care personnel working in the facility
11comply with access to care and information protocols that
12comply with the provisions of this Act.
 
13    (745 ILCS 70/9)  (from Ch. 111 1/2, par. 5309)
14    Sec. 9. Liability. No person, association, or corporation,
15which owns, operates, supervises, or manages a health care
16facility shall be civilly or criminally liable to any person,
17estate, or public or private entity by reason of refusal of the
18health care facility to permit or provide any particular form
19of health care service which violates the facility's conscience
20as documented in its ethical guidelines, mission statement,
21constitution, bylaws, articles of incorporation, regulations,
22or other governing documents.
23    Nothing in this Act act shall be construed so as to relieve
24a physician, or other health care personnel, or a health care

 

 

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1facility from obligations under the law of providing emergency
2medical care.
3(Source: P.A. 90-246, eff. 1-1-98.)
 
4    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect January
51, 2016.