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91_HB1084
LRB9104942ACpc
1 AN ACT to amend the Abused and Neglected Long Term Care
2 Facility Residents Reporting Act by changing Section 6.2 and
3 adding Section 6.9.
4 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
5 represented in the General Assembly:
6 Section 5. The Abused and Neglected Long Term Care
7 Facility Residents Reporting Act is amended by changing
8 Section 6.2 and adding Section 6.9 as follows:
9 (210 ILCS 30/6.2) (from Ch. 111 1/2, par. 4166.2)
10 (Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2000)
11 Sec. 6.2. Inspector General; mental health and
12 developmental disability facilities.
13 (a) The Governor shall appoint, and the Senate shall
14 confirm, an Inspector General who shall function within the
15 Department of Human Services and report to the Secretary of
16 Human Services and the Governor. The Inspector General shall
17 investigate reports of suspected abuse or neglect (as those
18 terms are defined in Section 3 of this Act) of patients or
19 residents in any mental health or developmental disabilities
20 facility operated by the Department of Human Services and
21 shall have authority to investigate and take immediate action
22 on reports of abuse or neglect of recipients, whether
23 patients or residents, in any mental health or developmental
24 disabilities facility or program that is licensed or
25 certified by the Department of Human Services (as successor
26 to the Department of Mental Health and Developmental
27 Disabilities) or that is funded by the Department of Human
28 Services (as successor to the Department of Mental Health and
29 Developmental Disabilities) and is not licensed or certified
30 by any agency of the State. At the specific, written request
31 of an agency of the State other than the Department of Human
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1 Services (as successor to the Department of Mental Health and
2 Developmental Disabilities), the Inspector General may
3 cooperate in investigating reports of abuse and neglect of
4 persons with mental illness or persons with developmental
5 disabilities. The Inspector General shall have no
6 supervision over or involvement in routine, programmatic,
7 licensure, or certification operations of the Department of
8 Human Services or any of its funded agencies.
9 The Inspector General shall promulgate rules establishing
10 minimum requirements for reporting allegations of abuse and
11 neglect and initiating, conducting, and completing
12 investigations. The promulgated rules shall clearly set
13 forth that in instances where 2 or more State agencies could
14 investigate an allegation of abuse or neglect, the Inspector
15 General shall not conduct an investigation that is redundant
16 to an investigation conducted by another State agency. The
17 rules shall establish criteria for determining, based upon
18 the nature of the allegation, the appropriate method of
19 investigation, which may include, but need not be limited to,
20 site visits, telephone contacts, or requests for written
21 responses from agencies. The rules shall also clarify how
22 the Office of the Inspector General shall interact with the
23 licensing unit of the Department of Human Services in
24 investigations of allegations of abuse or neglect. Any
25 allegations or investigations of reports made pursuant to
26 this Act shall remain confidential until a final report is
27 completed. The resident or patient who allegedly was abused
28 or neglected and his or her legal guardian shall be informed
29 by the facility or agency of the report of alleged abuse or
30 neglect. Final reports regarding unsubstantiated or unfounded
31 allegations shall remain confidential, except that final
32 reports may be disclosed pursuant to Section 6 of this Act.
33 The Inspector General shall be appointed for a term of 4
34 years.
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1 (b) The Inspector General shall within 24 hours after
2 receiving a report of suspected abuse or neglect determine
3 whether the evidence indicates that any possible criminal act
4 has been committed. If he determines that a possible criminal
5 act has been committed, or that special expertise is required
6 in the investigation, he shall immediately notify the
7 Department of State Police. The Department of State Police
8 shall investigate any report indicating a possible murder,
9 rape, or other felony. All investigations conducted by the
10 Inspector General shall be conducted in a manner designed to
11 ensure the preservation of evidence for possible use in a
12 criminal prosecution.
13 (b-5) The Inspector General shall make a determination
14 to accept or reject a preliminary report of the investigation
15 of alleged abuse or neglect based on established
16 investigative procedures. The facility or agency may request
17 clarification or reconsideration based on additional
18 information. For cases where the allegation of abuse or
19 neglect is substantiated, the Inspector General shall require
20 the facility or agency to submit a written response. The
21 written response from a facility or agency shall address in a
22 concise and reasoned manner the actions that the agency or
23 facility will take or has taken to protect the resident or
24 patient from abuse or neglect, prevent reoccurrences, and
25 eliminate problems identified and shall include
26 implementation and completion dates for all such action.
27 (c) The Inspector General shall, within 10 calendar days
28 after the transmittal date of a completed investigation where
29 abuse or neglect is substantiated or administrative action is
30 recommended, provide a complete report on the case to the
31 Secretary of Human Services and to the agency in which the
32 abuse or neglect is alleged to have happened. The complete
33 report shall include a written response from the agency or
34 facility operated by the State to the Inspector General that
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1 addresses in a concise and reasoned manner the actions that
2 the agency or facility will take or has taken to protect the
3 resident or patient from abuse or neglect, prevent
4 reoccurrences, and eliminate problems identified and shall
5 include implementation and completion dates for all such
6 action. The Secretary of Human Services shall accept or
7 reject the response and establish how the Department will
8 determine whether the facility or program followed the
9 approved response. The Secretary may require Department
10 personnel to visit the facility or agency for training,
11 technical assistance, programmatic, licensure, or
12 certification purposes. Administrative action, including
13 sanctions, may be applied should the Secretary reject the
14 response or should the facility or agency fail to follow the
15 approved response. The facility or agency shall inform the
16 resident or patient and the legal guardian whether the
17 reported allegation was substantiated, unsubstantiated, or
18 unfounded. There shall be an appeals process for any person
19 or agency that is subject to any action based on a
20 recommendation or recommendations.
21 (d) The Inspector General may recommend to the
22 Departments of Public Health and Human Services sanctions to
23 be imposed against mental health and developmental
24 disabilities facilities under the jurisdiction of the
25 Department of Human Services for the protection of residents,
26 including appointment of on-site monitors or receivers,
27 transfer or relocation of residents, and closure of units.
28 The Inspector General may seek the assistance of the Attorney
29 General or any of the several State's attorneys in imposing
30 such sanctions.
31 (e) The Inspector General shall establish and conduct
32 periodic training programs for Department employees
33 concerning the prevention and reporting of neglect and abuse.
34 (f) The Inspector General shall at all times be granted
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1 access to any mental health or developmental disabilities
2 facility operated by the Department, shall establish and
3 conduct unannounced site visits to those facilities at least
4 once annually, and shall be granted access, for the purpose
5 of investigating a report of abuse or neglect, to any
6 facility or program funded by the Department that is subject
7 under the provisions of this Section to investigation by the
8 Inspector General for a report of abuse or neglect.
9 (g) Nothing in this Section shall limit investigations
10 by the Department of Human Services that may otherwise be
11 required by law or that may be necessary in that Department's
12 capacity as the central administrative authority responsible
13 for the operation of State mental health and developmental
14 disability facilities.
15 (h) This Section is repealed on January 1, 2000.
16 (Source: P.A. 89-427, eff. 12-7-95; 89-507, eff. 7-1-97;
17 90-252, eff. 7-29-97; 90-512, eff. 8-22-97; 90-655, eff.
18 7-30-98.)
19 (210 ILCS 30/6.9 new)
20 Sec. 6.9. Inspector General; long term care facilities.
21 (a) The Governor shall appoint, and the Senate shall
22 confirm, an Inspector General who shall have the authority to
23 conduct investigations into allegations of or incidents of
24 possible misconduct, misfeasance, malfeasance, or violations
25 of rules, procedures, or laws concerning the abuse or neglect
26 of residents of long term care facilities licensed by the
27 Department of Public Health. The Inspector General shall make
28 recommendations to the Director of Public Health concerning
29 civil or criminal actions against long term care facilities.
30 Any investigation conducted by the Inspector General shall be
31 independent and separate from the reports mandated by Section
32 4. The Inspector General shall be appointed for a term of 4
33 years. The Inspector General shall be independent of the
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1 operations of the Department and shall report to the Director
2 of Public Health and perform other duties the Director may
3 designate.
4 (b) The Inspector General shall have access to all
5 information and personnel necessary to perform the duties of
6 the office.
7 (c) The Inspector General shall be the primary liaison
8 between the Attorney General, the State's Attorneys, and the
9 various law enforcement agencies of this State and its
10 political subdivisions with regard to investigations
11 conducted under the Inspector General's auspices. If the
12 Inspector General determines that a possible criminal act has
13 been committed, or that special expertise is required in the
14 investigation, he or she shall immediately notify the proper
15 enforcement authority. All investigations conducted by the
16 Inspector General shall be conducted in a manner designed to
17 ensure the preservation of evidence for possible use in a
18 criminal prosecution.
19 (d) The Inspector General may recommend to the
20 Department, the Department of Human Services, or any other
21 appropriate agency, civil or criminal actions to be brought
22 against long term care facilities licensed by the Department.
23 The Inspector General may seek the assistance of the Attorney
24 General or any of the State's Attorneys in imposing
25 liability.
26 (e) The Inspector General shall at all times be granted
27 access to any long term care facility licensed by the
28 Department.
29 (f) Nothing in this Section shall limit investigations
30 by the Department that may otherwise be required by law or
31 that may be necessary in the Department's capacity as the
32 central licensing authority for long term care facilities.
33 (g) The Inspector General shall have the power to
34 subpoena witnesses and compel the production of books and
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1 papers pertinent to an investigation authorized by this Act.
2 Any person who fails to appear in response to a subpoena or
3 to answer any question or produce any books or papers
4 pertinent to an investigation under this Act or who knowingly
5 gives false testimony in relation to an investigation under
6 this Act is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor.
7 (h) The Inspector General shall provide to the General
8 Assembly and the Governor, no later than January 1 of each
9 year, a summary of reports and investigations made under this
10 Section for the prior fiscal year. The summaries shall detail
11 the imposition of sanctions and the final disposition of
12 those recommendations. The summaries shall not contain any
13 confidential or identifying information concerning the
14 subjects of the reports and investigations. The summaries
15 also shall include detailed recommended administrative
16 actions and matters for consideration by the General
17 Assembly.
18 (i) As used in this Section, "Inspector General" refers
19 to the person appointed under subsection (a) of this Section.
20
21 Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
22 becoming law.